Inclusion in action: an in-depth case study of an effective inclusive secondary school in the south-west of England
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Inclusion
The case study school
The study looked at Hunfley Community School (a pseudonym is used here to protect the school's anonymity), a co-educational comprehensive 11-16 school with a roll of 675 in the south west of England. It had a wide catchment, and, as an LEA-resourced school for students with physical disabilities, also took a considerable number of its students from outside the catchment area. The school had been largely modified to accommodate these students – for example, wheelchair users had access to all major parts of the site. The school catered for a wide range of students and for years had been implementing integrated programmes to include students with:
- emotional and behavioural difficulties;
- physical disabilities; and
- (more recently) other significant disabilities.
Hunfley also offered a wide range of community activities for adults alongside, and integrated with, the curriculum of the school. It had a large Curriculum and Learning Support Department, with a head, three learning support teachers, and eight learning support assistants. This department had evolved as the process of increasing integration was being implemented.
Because the school was identified by its LEA as providing a good example of inclusive practice, the researchers were able to use it to examine the effectiveness of the policies of the LEA itself. Subsequently, an Ofsted inspection characterised Hunfley's practice as 'excellent.'
