Inclusion and Special Educational Needs Research Cluster

Inclusion as a human rights issue related to social justice is an area of central importance to the Institute of Education. As a research cluster focusing on inclusion, we have particular expertise in removing barriers for those described as having special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), with specific interests in: 

Regarding SEND law specifically, the University of Derby offer a SEND Legal Advice Clinic to the residents of Derbyshire.  

Focussing on inclusion more broadly, we also have expertise in the areas of LGBT+ and children seeking sanctuary. The work of the ISEND Cluster is also closely aligned with the Race and Education Research Cluster. 

Our aims

The work of the ISEND Research Cluster aims to: 

Our teams are delivering these aims through a wide range of projects which are shaping policy and practice, and ultimately improving outcomes for children and young people. 

These projects include activities as diverse as conducting large-scale policy and practice evaluations, to centralising the voices of young disabled researchers. 

Research Cluster Team

  • Wykeham Bosworth-Nightingale - PhD Scholarship Student. An Ethnographic Study of a Supported Internship Programme
  • John Brown - PhD Student. Uncovering Teachers' Lived Experience Accounts of Hidden Disability and Being Professional
  • Wendy Conrad - EdD Student. Sanctuary Families' Perspectives on Accessing Education for Children with SEND in England
  • Kayte Haselgrove - PhD Student. How do the Orientations of the Subject Specialist Teacher in the Further Education and Skills Sector in England Change Over Time and in Response to Institutional and External Forces and Factors?
  • Alison McIntosh - EdD Student. Spaces of Punishment: A Foucauldian analysis of removal rooms in UK secondary schools
  • Sarah Roeschlaub - PhD Student. An Investigation into how Same-Sex Families Conceptualise their Family Unit and the Influence of External and Internal Factors on Them
  • Ifza Shakoor - PhD Student. Equality and Inclusive Practice in Career Development: Diversifying the pipeline
  • Maria Szreder - PhD Student. Scholarship Student. Investigating Supported Internships in England and the United States: The discursive construction of supported internships and implications for the social inclusion of people with disabilities
  • Alex Tomkins - EdD Student. Exploring assessment practices informed by Hermeneutic Phenomenology in special education

Learn more about doctoral study at the University of Derby

Our research

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Past Projects

The ITT: Team Programme Alumni Evaluation (funded by the Young Enterprise) is aimed at engaging young people aged 15-19 with mild to moderate learning difficulties. It provides them with a structured enterprise learning opportunity based on running an actual business.

In the East Midlands, children and young people with learning disabilities are struggling to find opportunities for them and their families to experience exceptional arts and a lack of job opportunities for disabled artists means creative opportunities are limited.

The Mighty Creatives commissioned the University of Derby for the educational evaluation of the project. SPLASH! is a project funded by the Arts Council of England.

Research-informed teaching

The Institute of Education runs a number of courses which are shaped and informed by the work of this research cluster.

For further details contact: Trevor Cotterill T.Cotterill@derby.ac.uk 

 

For further details contact: Dr Ruth Mieschbuehler R.Mieschbuehler@derby.ac.uk

 

  • PG Cert - National Award for SEN Co-ordination: Leading Effective, Inclusive Practice in SEN

For further details contact: Jo Baines J.Baines@derby.ac.uk or Julia Trickey J.Trickey@derby.ac.uk

 

For further details contact: Dr Jennifer Marshall j.marshall@derby.ac.uk or Wendy Conrad w.conrad@derby.ac.uk 

A child's hand covered in yellow paint.

ISEND Events

Discover our future and past Research Cluster events.

Find out moreFind out more

Publications

2024

2023

  • Brassington, J. and Brett, A., 2023. Pride and progress: Making schools LGBT+ inclusive spaces.
  • Codina, G., Ali, Ali, and Shepherd, R. (2023) Equality, Diversity and Inclusion in Higher Education in the UK. In N. Oruc Ertürk, and A. Yürekli (Eds) Inclusive Education: Definition and Conceptual Framework, Münster (Germany): Waxman, pp. 149-148
  • Cotterill, T. (2023). A Student Guide to the SEND Code of Practice: Exploring key areas of need. London: Routledge.
  • Cotterill, T. (2023). Autism: A Student’s Guide. London: SAGE

2022

2021

2020

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