Unmasked & Unapologetic

Our government is trying to help our educational provisions and the children it is failing… but they need to understand this.

Inclusion isn’t a room at the end of a corridor.

It isn’t a timetable slot.

It isn’t one person’s job.

Inclusion is a culture. And culture always starts at the top.

As schools move toward “greater inclusion”, I find myself thinking this:

If inclusion sits only with the ALNCo it will always feel like an add-on.

When it is led by senior leadership, it becomes part of the air everyone breathes.

I say this not just as a Chief Exec — but as a mum.

I have watched what happens when inclusion is written in policy but not felt in practice.

And I have seen what happens when leaders truly model it, protect it and embed it into behaviour systems, staff training, and everyday decisions.

That’s when things shift.

Real inclusion looks like:

• Spaces that allow regulation without shame

• Learning that is visual, accessible and flexible

• Adults who understand that communication is not always verbal

• Curiosity about what happened this morning… last week… last year

• Predicting and planning instead of reacting

• Adults regulating themselves before expecting a child to regulate

And something we need to be honest about:

A “regulation activity” given after work is completed is NOT regulation.

It’s a reward.

Regulation is not something to be earned through compliance. It must be available when it is needed — not when it is convenient.

We often assume children feel safe because there are adults in the room.

But safety isn’t proximity.

It’s relational. It’s emotional. It’s nervous-system level.

And without safety, learning simply doesn’t happen.

Fair doesn’t mean the same for everyone.

Fair means each child getting what they need to thrive.

If we want inclusion to truly work in mainstream schools, it cannot live in a file.

It cannot live in one role.

It has to live in leadership.