Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Acknowledgements
- Author biographies
- Preface
- Foreword
- Introduction
- one Disability and education in historical perspective
- two Complex needs, divergent frameworks: challenges disabled children face in accessing appropriate support services and inclusive educational opportunities
- three From SEN to Sen: could the ‘capabilities’ approach transform the educational opportunities of disabled children?
- four Multi-agency working and disabled children and young people: from ‘what works’ to ‘active becoming’
- five Disabled children’s ‘voice’ and experience
- six Building brighter futures for all our children: education, disability, social policy and the family
- seven Access to higher education for disabled students: a policy success story?
- eight Meeting the standard but failing the test: children and young people with sensory impairments
- nine Heading for inclusion: a head teacher’s journey towards an inclusive school
- Suggested further reading
six - Building brighter futures for all our children: education, disability, social policy and the family
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 07 September 2022
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Acknowledgements
- Author biographies
- Preface
- Foreword
- Introduction
- one Disability and education in historical perspective
- two Complex needs, divergent frameworks: challenges disabled children face in accessing appropriate support services and inclusive educational opportunities
- three From SEN to Sen: could the ‘capabilities’ approach transform the educational opportunities of disabled children?
- four Multi-agency working and disabled children and young people: from ‘what works’ to ‘active becoming’
- five Disabled children’s ‘voice’ and experience
- six Building brighter futures for all our children: education, disability, social policy and the family
- seven Access to higher education for disabled students: a policy success story?
- eight Meeting the standard but failing the test: children and young people with sensory impairments
- nine Heading for inclusion: a head teacher’s journey towards an inclusive school
- Suggested further reading
Summary
Introduction
[We are] setting out an ambitious programme of action that will bring disabled people fully within the scope of the ‘opportunity society’. By 2025, disabled people in Britain should have full opportunities and choices to improve their quality of life and to be respected and included as equal members of society. (Prime Minister's Strategy Unit, 2005)
Our aim is to make this the best place in the world for our children and young people to grow up.… Families are the bedrock of society and the place for nurturing happy, capable and resilient citizens. In our consultation, families made it clear that they would like better and more flexible information and support that reflect the real lives they lead. Our Expert Groups emphasised how important it is that parents are involved with all policy affecting children and that we need particularly to improve how Government and services involve all family members, including fathers. To achieve this, we must put parents’ and carers’ views at the heart of Government and find new ways of engaging parents as active citizens. (DCSF, 2007)
We recognise the importance of providing family support, particularly for those families who may be facing multiple problems. There will be a national campaign to support those families who face multiple problems, underpinned by local Community Budgets that provide pooled resources from 2011–12. Our key objective is to improve outcomes for all our children, recognising that some parents may need additional support in order to achieve that goal. (Ministerial contribution to debate on the Comprehensive Spending Review, 2010)
The past two decades have seen an unprecedented interest in, and development of, a wide range of initiatives around improving the life chances of disabled people (including the nation's children) and their families. Both the Labour and Coalition governments have stressed their commitment to support for family life as key to improving outcomes for the nation's children. The Disability Equality Duty applies to all public services and the principle of equal citizenship and valued roles for all disabled people has been widely accepted – if not always delivered in practice.
- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- Education, Disability and Social Policy , pp. 105 - 130Publisher: Bristol University PressPrint publication year: 2011