“Almost 9 out of 10 teachers say they need more help to support their SEND learners.” (Teacher Tapp, June 2025)
In the years following the pandemic, UK schools find themselves supporting students with a more diverse range of needs than ever before. This is reflected in the sharp increase in demand for Special Education Needs and Disability (SEND) support. At the same time, education policy is shifting. National reviews and controversial discussions about funding are placing SEND provision under a microscope, prompting teachers and school leaders to reflect on inclusive practice in their setting.
And while the challenge is clear, so is the opportunity. Meta-analyses of inclusive education studies find that the presence of students with SEND in mainstream classrooms could lead to modest positive gains in achievement for all (Szumski, Smogorzewska, and Karwowski, 2017; Kefallinou et al., 2020). Inclusive strategies have the potential to improve outcomes and classroom culture for all learners.
So, if inclusive teaching benefits everyone, what do teachers actually need to make it work?
What teachers are telling us
The short answer? More support and more confidence.
Further exploration of the Teacher Tapp survey (June 2025) reveals that only 10% of primary and 15% of secondary teachers felt prepared to support pupils with Social, Emotional and Mental Health (SEMH) needs. Confidence across other areas of SEND wasn’t much higher: 68% of primary and 61% of secondary teachers reported feeling unprepared overall.
And what about professional development? A YouGov survey for Ofsted (May 2024) found that 33% of teachers had been offered SEND-related CPD since 2021, making it the second most common training area. But crucially, SEND was also the most requested area where teachers felt they needed more training.
The message is clear: teachers want relevant, high-quality guidance on how to develop inclusive practice. While training is being offered more frequently, a significant gap remains between provision and preparedness.
Classroom realities
In practice, inclusion isn’t policy; it’s a juggling act. In most mainstream classrooms, students with vastly different learning profiles often sit side-by-side.
The challenges are multiple:
- Time constraints make personalised support difficult
- Gaps in training leave staff unsure how to adapt tasks or manage behaviour
- Reduced access to specialist staff (e.g. teaching assistants, therapists, SENCOs) means teachers are doing more with less
Perhaps most significantly, teachers often feel emotionally stretched. They care deeply. At the Annual Conference 2025, General secretary of the NAHT, Paul Whiteman, put it like this:
No one who works in schools wants to ever feel like they are failing a child, but right now, too many school leaders are frustrated that they can’t fully meet the needs of the pupils in their care.
Practical ways forward
The good news? Current research is beginning to highlight some key approaches that will support schools to build more inclusive practice, and improve outcomes for all students. The Inclusion in Practice report (July 2025) shares some key insights from schools across the UK. These include:
- Knowing children well, early and often: Strong relationships are key. Schools that build a detailed, evolving understanding of each learner, both academically and emotionally, are better equipped to personalise support and respond quickly when needs change.
- High quality and evidence-informed teaching practice: Inclusion starts with expert teaching. Teachers develop expertise in scaffolding, modelling and chunking to reduce cognitive load, where schools invest time in developing strong routines and sustained professional development.
- Inclusion as a strategic and shared responsibility: Schools see inclusion as everyone’s business. They create structures which enable staff collaboration, prioritise inclusive leadership, and align SEND support with whole-school improvement goals.
Our guide to inclusive practice
To support this work, we’ve created a free downloadable guide ‘Special Educational Needs in Mainstream Schools: Using the Great Teaching Toolkit to build inclusive excellence’
What it includes:
- A deeper dive into building a supportive environment and developing classroom expertise
- Evidence-based strategies that support inclusive practice
- Prompts for reviewing SEND support in your setting
Whether you’re a classroom teacher looking to make tomorrow’s lesson more inclusive, or a senior leader planning whole-school improvement, this guide is designed to get everyone on the same page.
References:
Department for Education (2023) Independent analysis of the consultation responses to the SEND review: Right support, right place, right time. Available at: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/63ff8aa28fa8f527fc6d9d16/Independent_analysis_of_the_consultation_responses_to_the_SEND_review_right_support__right_place__right_time.pdf (Accessed: 23 July 2025).
Department for Education (2024) Independent review of teachers’ professional development in schools: Phase 1 findings. Available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/teachers-professional-development-in-schools/independent-review-of-teachers-professional-development-in-schools-phase-1-findings (Accessed: 23 July 2025).
Gorard, S. and See, B.H. (2017) ‘The trials of evidence-based education: The promises, opportunities and problems of trials in education’, Educational Research, 59(2), pp. 149–165. Available at: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1747938X17300131 (Accessed: 23 July 2025).
Inclusion in Practice (2025) Emerging insights: Inclusion in Practice pilot report. Available at: https://inclusioninpractice.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/IIP_Emerging_Insights_Report_vF-2.pdf (Accessed: 23 July 2025).
ResearchGate (2020) Understanding the value of inclusive education and its implementation: A review of the literature. Available at: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/344261482_Understanding_the_value_of_inclusive_education_and_its_implementation_A_review_of_the_literature (Accessed: 23 July 2025).
Teacher Tapp (n.d.) Evidence summary: SEND. Available at: https://teachertapp.com/uk/publications/evidence-summary-send/ (Accessed: 23 July 2025).
Tes (2025) Lack of teacher training (ITT) on SEND threatens DfE inclusion plan. Available at: https://www.tes.com/magazine/news/general/lack-of-teacher-training-itt-on-send-threatens-dfe-inclusion-plan?utm_source=chatgpt.com (Accessed: 23 July 2025).
Weale, S. (2025) ‘What is SEND? Labour faces backlash over overhaul plans in England’, The Guardian, 7 July. Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/education/2025/jul/07/what-is-send-labour-backlash-overhaul-plans-england (Accessed: 23 July 2025).
