A specialist school for children with communication difficulties will close this month after a shock announcement.

Penn School, a non-maintained day and boarding school for pupils aged 11 to 18 with communication difficulties, will close on July 22, leaving staff without a job and forcing parents to find new schools for their children.

The school has struggled over the past two years after being placed in special measures in 2013, according to administrators, Deloitte.

The move "resulted in a considerable drop in student numbers and income". 

Despite moving into ‘requires improvement’ after the latest Ofsted inspection, the school, which has 74 pupils, will now close unless a new buyer is found.

Staff were informed that the school was going into administration on Tuesday after a meeting with the trustees and administrators and parents were alerted by email that evening.

A teacher who has taught at the school for over ten years, said he is still ‘reeling’ from the devastating news that he will no longer have a job.

He said: "We don’t know what the next step is. I got a lot of job satisfaction from working with the pupils, but there was this other side to it. Paper work and Ofsted inspections and data and targets, but throughout all of this, the young people have been amazing. We have had a lot of problems that haven’t been managed properly. 

"Things are still in flux. I’m a bit disorientated at the moment. I do feel anger and depression, but I really just feel for the kids more than anything, they are the ones that really matter and of course the staff."

Lee Manning, Joint Administrator and Partner in Deloitte’s Restructuring Services practice, said: "The financial pressure from falling pupil numbers has been building over the last two years and a recent unanticipated reduction in the expected numbers for the next academic year has meant that, despite the efforts of the Trustees, the School is no longer in a position to continue as a going concern.

"The lack of funds makes it impossible for the administrators to operate the school beyond the end of this term, unless a buyer can be found.

"Our priority is the welfare of this vulnerable group of children and we are consulting closely with staff, pupils and parents during this difficult period.  We will also be working with the various Local Authorities to ensure that families’ needs for moving their children to alternative schools are met."

Zahir Mohammed, Buckinghamshire County Council’s Cabinet Member for Education and Skills said: "Our primary focus is for the wellbeing and success of the students at the school, and support and guidance is being offered to all students, parents and carers.

"We will be working very closely with Buckinghamshire’s parents, carers and other local education providers over the coming weeks to secure appropriate education provision."