How to create your school inclusion strategy

Earlier this year, the Department for Education (DfE) published their white paper, ‘Every child achieving and thriving’, outlining plans for major SEND reforms in England. 

Among these was the statement that “Schools will be required to publish an Inclusion Strategy outlining how resources are deployed to benefit children with SEND, which will be subject to oversight and challenge.” 

The white paper also introduced the DfE’s new inclusive mainstream fund (IMF), which has been provided to mainstream maintained, academy and free schools for the 2026-27 academic year. 

Conditions of the IMF grant 

The DfE’s guidance on Developing an inclusion strategy using the inclusive mainstream fund states the following conditions for receiving the grant: 

• Investing your IMF allocation in line with the 7 principles of inclusion 

• Publishing an inclusion strategy on your school website by 31 December 2026 – this must include detail of activity invested in to alleviate barriers to learning and participation and budgeted costs 

The DfE’s 7 principles of inclusion are: 

• Ambitious leadership and governance that embeds inclusion 

• Evidence-based support prioritising early intervention 

• High-quality adaptive teaching with curriculum designed for all learners 

• Enriching provision beyond the classroom that all children can access 

• A safe and respectful culture fostering belonging, attendance, and participation in learning 

• Strong partnerships with families and wider services 

• Inclusive environments with continuous improvements to accessibility 

So what does this mean for schools? Essentially, every state-funded mainstream school is required to publish an inclusion strategy on its website by 31 December 2026 as a condition of receiving the inclusive mainstream fund – and this must be in line with the above principles of inclusion. 

This article outlines what your inclusion strategy should include and how you can create one. 

What should my inclusion strategy include? 

With your inclusion strategy, you should ultimately be working towards improving attainment, engagement, wellbeing and belonging for all pupils. 

It’s key that your inclusion strategy is focused on approaches that align with the DfE’s principles of inclusion – and any activities funded using the IMF must come under one of these. 

With better support for all pupils being central to SEND reforms, you should prioritise strengthening your universal support offer, such as with adaptive teaching. Ultimately, you should look at activities that will help you create a stronger inclusive offer for every pupil. 

As well as strengthening your universal offer, your strategy should also support the delivery of early and effective targeted support – without the need for formal diagnosis. 

The DfE also recommends you focus on implementing fewer approaches well, rather than implementing more approaches with less focus. It's also key for your approaches to be evidence informed. 

Developing your inclusion strategy 

You should start by identifying common barriers to learning and participation across your cohort.  

To build a strong universal offer, it’s key you understand the needs pupils in your school actually have – and not just those with formal diagnoses of SEND. 

The DfE suggest using the following sources to identify common barriers: 

• Classroom observation and engagement with teachers 

• Internal assessments 

• Engagement with families and pupils 

• Discussions with external professionals 

• Data on SEND, including attendance, behaviour, and attainment 

• Evidence on local or national trends in changing need 

You also need to use evidence to consider which approaches may work best in your setting. 

The DfE’s guidance includes the following as examples of evidence you could draw on: 

• DfE’s RISE support for inclusive mainstream education 

• The Education Endowment Foundation’s (EEF) Special Educational Needs in Mainstream Schools guidance report 

• The EEF’s list of Promising Programmes 

• DfE’s Inclusion bases in schools guidance 

• Speech and Language UK’s Resource library for educators 

• Mentally Healthy Schools’ targeted support 

When it comes to writing your strategy, make sure it includes: 

• The barriers to learning and participation identified across your cohort 

• The activities invested in to alleviate these barriers 

• Intended outcomes 

• A review of the previous academic year 

DfE states your strategy should: 

• Reflect on existing inclusive practice within your school and how effectively it removes barriers and supports all pupils (especially those with SEND) – and where you could go further in delivering a high-quality universal offer 

• Identify the commonly occurring barriers to learning and participation across your cohort 

• Prioritise activities that will have the greatest impact on your cohort (taking into account the evidence that supports these approaches) 

• Set clear, realistic and measurable outcomes that enable you to reflect on the extent to which you have strengthened inclusion 

Need help writing your inclusion strategy? Jasmine Norden shares 7 top tips from the experts in Tes Magazine's article: The deadline for inclusion strategy statements and tips for writing yours.

Who should be involved in writing my school’s inclusion strategy? 

Senior leaders including your school’s head teacher, deputy or assistant head, school business manager and SENCO should all be involved in the development of your inclusion strategy. 

Similarly, governors, trustees and academy trust leaders should also be involved, depending on your setting. 

Other school staff may also be involved, such as those involved with pastoral support, heads of departments and curriculum leads – but who exactly is involved may depend on the areas your school is focusing on. 

It's also essential that you include parents and pupils themselves, as well as any other relevant stakeholders. For example, you might have specialist partners in your local area (such as those under your local authority’s Experts at Hand offer). 

Will my inclusion strategy be assessed? 

Ofsted will assess how well leaders ensure your school’s inclusion strategy is embedded in practice, as well as how well-equipped staff are to deliver it. 

Measure impact with confidence

With Provision Map, you can see all provision plans and targeted interventions, including their cost and impact, so you know exactly how effective your targeted support is.

Read our guide to learn how Provision Map helps SENCOs reduce workload while helping you create consistent, accurate and centralised records – so you can ensure every student gets the support they need to thrive. 

Read guide