Educational psychology and the evidence for inclusion in practice

The Department for Education, in setting out inclusive education as a national priority and a shared responsibility, has established a ‘SEND inclusion in education expert group‘ (EAG). 

I have been appointed to this group to represent the EP profession as the chair of the National Association of Principal Educational Psychologists (NAPEP). The EAG exists to advise ministers on how to improve mainstream education outcomes and experiences for children and young people with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities. 

The group recognises that there has been ample opportunity to identify current problems, but solutions and good practice need to be shared and celebrated in order to move forward.

The EAG will consider how reforms focused on improving inclusion will interact with wider system reforms including the Curriculum and Assessment Review and reforms to Ofsted and accountability. The EAG will run from November 2024 to June 2025 to explore the following topics:

• Inclusive classroom practice and culture: Embedding effective curricular and pedagogical approaches.
• Partnerships with families: Enhancing collaboration with parents for successful mainstream inclusion.
• Identification of children with SEND: Improving early and accurate identification of needs.
• Additional support: Providing more targeted and specialist provisions.
• Workforce capability: Building expertise and capacity within mainstream settings.
• Enabling conditions and incentives: Removing barriers and enhancing systemic support for inclusive education.

Showcase your work to support inclusion

There is now an opportunity for schools and EP services to add to this national discussion and showcase the work they have undertaken to support inclusion in mainstream schools. 

Please take the time to share your work through our ‘Inclusion in Practice’ website before the 1^st May 2025.

EPs have rich and extensive training which means we have a duty to use and apply all of our skills as applied psychologists to maximise impact and build the evidence required to enable mainstream inclusion. If services are positioned well in the system we can be a significant part of the solution. 

Let’s demonstrate how Educational Psychology as a profession can make the vision of a truly inclusive education system a reality. 

Reflections on where we are: EPs as part of the solution

The frustration felt towards the current education and SEND (Special Educational Needs and Disabilities) systems on behalf of our most vulnerable children is well documented and experienced by those who live and work within it. Although EPs have the skills and knowledge to support inclusion, commissioning and positioning has meant that over time, and in some ways, we have become part of the problem. 

The role of EPs in describing children’s SEND and our HCPC commitment means we do what is right for the child in front of us within their current context. You could argue we have been re-writing the curriculum and school offer one child at a time since 2014. But in doing so we can inadvertently reinforce the child’s context. 

Although we might also do work ‘up stream’ to counterbalance this and try to operate from a strengths-based, affirmative standpoint, the volume of work we do that is ‘othering’ is potentially outweighing these efforts. This leads to a significant proportion of the population described as ‘different from’ and therefore not belonging and unable to have their educational needs met within their local communities. 

A workforce survey undertaken by the Department for Education (June 2023) highlighted that demand for EP services is outweighing capacity. Only 11% of Principal Educational Psychologists felt confident their service would be able to meet needs if funding, training, and service delivery stayed the same. The pressures of volume have led to market forces and a range of employment options that mean the commissioning and deployment of EPs is lacking a coordinated approach from a national perspective. I witness the impact of the postcode lottery families experience in accessing EP services, first hand, day in, day out, through the work I do to support local authorities with limited or no local EP service. 

EP services have responded creatively in order to meet the pressure of increasing demand, the unintended consequences being that our contribution has been diluted and our skills questioned. That said, when access to EP services is achieved, service users report favourably on the input at all levels: individual children, schools, and systems.

Take this opportunity to share your real examples, proven strategies, and the enabling conditions that make inclusion possible.

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