Training & Support
What does the best inclusive education provision look like? Education Specialist Emma Dibden outlines the challenges – and suggests some solutions
Inclusive education and high-quality SEND provision are no longer optional extras – they are central to any education system that aims to be equitable. Shaping culture, environments, curricula and pedagogy to ensure every learner’s needs are recognised and met improves both wellbeing and learning outcomes for all students.
Evidence from OECD analyses also shows that countries which prioritise early identification, teacher training and the resourcing of special educational needs see better opportunities for learners who would otherwise be marginalised.
As part of their work to ensure the right to education, UNESCO acknowledges that when schools embed inclusive practice, they not only uphold every learner’s right to participate - they strengthen the whole system’s capacity to teach, engage and prepare young people for life.
Rethinking success and inclusion
In his recent publication, Mel Ainscow, Emeritus Professor of Education at the University of Manchester, Professor of Education at the University of Glasgow, and Adjunct Professor at Queensland University of Technology, Australia, suggests the starting point for inclusive education must be with the practitioners, “enlarging their capacity to imagine what might be achieved and increasing their sense of accountability for bringing this about”.
Sharing this sentiment, experienced educators Tom Rees and Ben Newmark developed an inclusive education framework with five guiding principles. Prominent among them was the need to recognise “success in all its forms” and to take “action at all levels”. Their message was simple: inclusion isn’t a bolt-on; it requires whole-school commitment and a cultural shift in how we define achievement.
That can feel like a tall order in a system that still largely prioritises academic performance in literacy, numeracy, and the rest of the traditional curriculum. But as Rees and Newmark point out, academic progress is only one part of the puzzle. A child’s ability to regulate emotions, develop positive attitudes and manage learning independently are just as vital for lifelong success.
Early identification and a graduated approach
Wherever you are in the world, most special educational needs policies identify early identification a key priority – and rightly so. Yet with such a large and diverse cohort of learners, teachers are tasked with identifying and responding to needs that aren’t always visible.
This is where a graduated approach becomes critical. It's a four-part cycle – assess, plan, do, review – that encourages schools to build a growing understanding of each learner, constantly refining support over time.
But to start this process, teachers need access to reliable, standardised assessments that can be taken by all pupils regardless of ability. Tools like CAT4, NGRT, or PASS can offer that first layer of insight, flagging possible barriers or hidden potential and providing a baseline for further investigation.
Looking beyond academics
Understanding a child’s learning profile, however, goes beyond reading ages or maths fluency. Many learners with less obvious difficulties – such as working memory issues or processing challenges – can appear to be coping until their struggles become more pronounced as they progress through the school system.
Research from Tracy Packiam Alloway and other experts in the field demonstrate the growing recognition of cognitive factors, such as working memory, as key indicators of specific learning difficulties such as dyslexia and dyscalculia. These findings have yet to be widely embedded into classroom practice, either because teachers don’t know about them, aren’t confident in identifying these problems or lack the tools and training to spot them.
Empowering learners at every stage
Fortunately, targeted screeners – such as Recall, YARC, Rapid, CoPS and LASS 8-11 – help teachers move beyond general observation by providing data that reveals specific learning challenges and informs tailored intervention. Just as importantly, they foster the professional confidence and consistency that effective SEND provision relies on.
For example, Exact further supports this process by digitally screening students for exam access arrangements, meeting rigorous requirements and producing clear reports to evidence applications.
Tools like Nearpod, an interactive classroom platform that uses quizzes, polls and videos to make lessons more engaging and provides instant feedback on individual students, can also help. When teachers can clearly see both the strengths and challenges in a learner’s profile – academic, cognitive, social and emotional – they’re better equipped to make decisions that meet students where they are.
At Renaissance, we believe that every student deserves the opportunity to develop their skills to their fullest potential. And that’s the real goal: inclusion that isn’t about lowering expectations, but about removing barriers so that every child can succeed – on their own terms.
