The number of children with special educational needs and disability (SEND) in London is growing. We are calling on local authorities, central government, and the education sector to make a firm commitment to ensuring all schools in London are inclusive by default.
Legally, schools must be inclusive. The Children and Families Act 2014 gave SEND children and young people the right to mainstream education. School leaders have a duty to establish a culture of high expectations to include them in all opportunities available to other children and young people. This isn’t always happening however.
We conducted qualitative research into inclusive practice in mainstream schools to examine the disparity in levels of inclusion across schools in London.
This research highlights the excellent work in London’s schools and local authorities. However, we cannot yet guarantee that all schools in London are inclusive by default. The research also found examples of unfair admissions practice, inappropriate exclusions and removing children from school when it is against their best interests (off-rolling).
Boroughs told us that some mainstream schools are supporting a much larger number of children with SEND than others. Schools told us that more children could be supported in mainstream settings if they were better supported. There is also a perception that some schools failed to take their fair share of SEND pupils.
London Councils’ report found that funding pressures were holding schools back from promoting inclusion. Also, the lack of SEND expertise and concern about impact on performance, was leading to children being off-rolled rather than being offered the support they need.
We welcome recent announcements from the government to boost funding for schools and see this as an opportunity to build a more inclusive offer for young Londoners with SEND.
Our report makes nine recommendations for boosting inclusion in schools.