A new school is set to open in a crumbling manor house over a year after the last tenants moved out.

Grade II-isted Northdown House, within Northdown Park in Margate, is owned by Thanet District Council (TDC) and has fallen into disrepair in recent years.

Previous tenant Your Leisure pulled out of its lease in July 2023 after 24 years, with SEN school The Lighthouse following suit later the same month.

Now, the council has found a new tenant in Life Skills Enterprise, which will be setting up a day school for autistic children.

The new provision could provide up to 80 specialist placements, requiring up to 40 staff with a proposed opening in 2025.

As part of the lease, the new occupants will begin extensive repairs to the building including internal refurbishment, repairing or replacing windows, work to the main entrance, porch, exterior of the building and resurfacing the car park.

In addition, Life Skills plans to open the Secret Jungle to the public, free of charge, at specific times during the week and open a community café.

The play area has been overgrown and shut since Summer 2018.

Director and founder of Life Skills Manor and Life Skills Enterprise Paul Barrett said: “I’m absolutely delighted.

“We have been given the opportunity to restore Northdown House as a school that caters for children aged 10-18 with a primary diagnosis of Autism Spectrum Condition.

“The need for a provision with specialist placements continues to grow and Northdown House, along with the Secret Jungle, natural woodland and beautiful surroundings, will enable local children to flourish.

“We have a proven track record of creating high-quality specialist provision.”

The park itself is not included in the lease and will remain open for public use.

Fences and gates will be installed to safeguard the children and also to retain the existing public right of way, the council states.

Cllr Ruth Duckworth, cabinet Member for regeneration and property at TDC, added: “I’m so pleased that we have secured a new tenant for Northdown House, and one that will provide a real benefit to local families in need of specialist education for their children.

“Northdown House is a beautiful building in a picturesque setting, and the works that will be carried out will help to safeguard the property for future generations.”

Parents and teachers at The Lighthouse School were heartbroken when the closure was announced, with owners Acorn Group citing “location and funding challenges”.

Karen Chantler, 33, whose son Alfie spent three-and-a-half years at Lighthouse, said at the time: “It’s stressful for myself, my partner and most of all my son.

“The school closing had an emotional impact on all of us as a family and our son found it to be a very distressing time.”

The stately home was left to the people of Margate in 1937 by the Friend family, and there was an uproar in 2008 when Thanet District Council deemed it surplus to requirements and tried to dispose of it.

However, after seeking legal advice, it was revealed that the house had restrictive covenants preventing the sale.