The Warnock Report was a 1978 UK government report, chaired by the philosopher Mary Warnock, that reviewed provision for children with disabilities and learning difficulties and recommended replacing the previous system of separate categories of handicap with the single concept of special educational needs (SEN), assessed individually for each child. Its recommendations, including a preference for educating children with special needs in mainstream schools wherever practicable, shaped the Education Act 1981 and much of subsequent UK special educational needs policy.
Facts
Key ProvisionEmphasis on teaching learning-disabled children in mainstream schools, and statementing of children to gain entitlement to special educational support. 2 Enacted / Adopted Year Classification
Policy TypeAccess or Equity Policy 1 FAQs
Did the Warnock Report say that one child in five was disabled?
No. The committee concluded that up to one child in five was likely to need special educational provision at some point in his or her school career, but it said this did not mean that one in five was handicapped in the traditional sense of the term. It expected most of those children not to have a long-term disability or disorder. Their learning problems, which might last for varying periods of time, would stem from a variety of causes.
Sources
1. Education in England: the history of our schools: Warnock Report (1978), Special Educational Needs
Education in England: the history of our schoolsPage textQuote, Page text
'To review educational provision in England, Scotland and Wales for children and young people handicapped by disabilities of body or mind, taking account of the medical aspects of their needs, together with arrangements to prepare them for entry into employment; to consider the most effective use of resources for these purposes; and to make recommendations'.
2. Mary Warnock, Baroness Warnock - Wikipedia
Public policy
Her report, published in 1978
Public policy, sentence 2
placing emphasis on the teaching of learning-disabled children in mainstream schools
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