Educational charity Langdon is to open a London college for the 16-to-25 age group, complementing its existing college in Manchester.
The charity - helping teenagers and young adults with mild-to-moderate learning needs towards independence - will convert its Maccabi House site in Edgware, which is currently used as a social centre.
It plans to identify and assess potential students in November before opening the day facility with an intake of around a dozen in January. It will need to raise up to £57,000 for resources, including tablet computers, partitions to create more classrooms and special equipment for disabled students.
The Manchester college principal, Chris Mayho, has been an integral part of the London team. He said the "very exciting" news meant that "at long last we can address the needs of the London parents. They've been asking me about it for long enough and now we're in a position to move ahead." Although four students from the capital currently attended the Manchester college, he added: "We're aware that not everybody can send their children away to a residential setting."
