What makes an inclusive system?
FOR LOCAL AUTHORITIES, TRUSTS AND SCHOOLS
Connect the experience of your community with the decisions your inclusion strategy needs to inform.
The DfE principles for mainstream schools in England offer a useful framework. Each needs to be examined through what people actually experience.
Seven policy connections
01
Leadership and governance
Ask: Where do students, staff and families see inclusive values reflected in decisions?
Check responsibilities, resources and how progress is reviewed alongside voice.
02
Early evidence-based support
Ask: Does useful help arrive when it is needed?
Examine support, referrals and review arrangements alongside people’s accounts.
03
Adaptive teaching and curriculum
Ask: Do learners feel recognised and supported?
Review teaching, materials and agreed adjustments with those using them.
04
Accessible enrichment
Ask: Who can take part in the wider offer?
Examine cost, timing, transport, selection and staffing. An activity being offered does not establish that everyone can access it.
05
Safe and respectful culture
Ask: Who feels safe, included and able to speak honestly?
Look at daily relationships, response processes and what happens after a concern.
06
Families and wider services
Ask: Do families feel heard and see follow-through?
Review communication and coordination between teams and services.
07
Inclusive environments
Ask: Who can access spaces, routines and resources?
Consider physical, sensory and communication access with the people affected.
Turn a question into a local enquiry
Agree the experience you want to improve, name a practical change and decide how you will find out whether people notice a difference.
Kaleidoscope’s interpretation of the DfE principles, not a DfE assessment or endorsement. England’s policy framework is not applied to international settings in the source data. Read the DfE guidance ↗Connect evidence with a practical response.
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