IOE Public Debates:

This year the Warnock Report turns 40 years old. How far have we come and where should we go next?

The Warnock Report marked a pivotal change in the provision of education for children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) – encouraging these children’s inclusion in mainstream classes, and introducing the system of ‘statementing’ that set out a child’s needs and entitlement to additional support.

But much has changed in the intervening years – not least the increase in the number of children with SEND and the complexity of their needs, wider policies of parental choice and school accountability and, now, funding constraints on the availability of special school places and SEND support in mainstream classrooms. More recent years have also seen challenges to the bias towards inclusion.

In this context we are bringing together reflections from Baroness Warnock herself and a range of perspectives to take stock of the Warnock Committee’s recommendations – their underlying principles, their implementation, and their relevance for the future.

Speakers include:

- Tara Flood, disability rights activist and Director at the Alliance for Inclusive Education

- Vijita Patel, Principal & National Leader of Education, Swiss Cottage School and Development & Research Centre

- Sally Phillips, Award-winning writer and actress

- Klaus Wedell, former Chair in Special Education, UCL Institute of Education, and Co-founder, National SENCo Forum

- Chair: Becky Francis, Director, UCL Institute of Education

#IOEDebates