Equality, Participation and Inclusion 2

Diverse Contexts

Jonathan Rix, Melanie Nind, Kieron Sheehy, Katy Simmons, John Parry, Rajni Kumrai, Jonathan Rix, Melanie Nind, Kieron Sheehy, Katy Simmons, John Parry, Rajni Kumrai

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2010
• ISBN:
  9781136886973
• Edition: 2
• Topic: Education
• Subtopic: Education General

What are the experiences of children and young people?

How can we think about the challenges they face?

What systems and practices can support them?

How can we develop greater equality, participation and inclusion across diverse settings?

This second edition of Equality, Participation and Inclusion 2: Diverse Contexts is the second of two Readers aimed at people with an interest in issues of equality, participation and inclusion for children and young people. This second Reader focuses in particular upon the diverse experiences and contexts in which children and young people encounter issues of equality, participation and inclusion.

Comprising readings taken from the latest research in journal articles, newly commissioned chapters, as well as several chapters from the first edition that retain particular relevance, this fully updated second edition has broadened its focus to consider a wider range of diverse experiences and contexts, whilst maintaining an emphasis on educational settings.

Drawing on the writing of academics, practitioners, children and young people, this collection is a rich source of information and ideas for students and practitioners who are interested in thinking about how inequality and exclusion are experienced, and how they can be challenged, and will be of particular interest to those working in education, health, youth and community work, youth justice and social services. Families and advocates are also likely to be drawn to the material as much of it reflects on lived experiences and life stories.

Chapter 1
Introduction

Another place

John Parry, Jonathan Rix, Rajni Kumrai and
Christopher Walsh

The thinking behind this collection

Equality, Participation and Inclusion: Diverse contexts and its partner Diverse perspectives are readers for the Open University course Equality, Participation and Inclusion: Learning from Each Other. As second editions both books draw on a greater diversity of perspectives and situations than the first editions. This book contains a compilation of challenging new material as well as several chapters from the first edition that retain particular relevance to the exploration of the issues fundamental to social justice. As a resource the chapters will be of particular interest across the contexts of education, health and social care. Practitioners working with and across these sectors should find the book a rich source of ideas and information. We also believe that families and advocates are likely to be drawn to the material as much of it reflects on real experiences and life stories. Indeed we know that some readers, from whatever background, will identify with the experiences of marginalisation and exclusion in the books and have their own stories to tell. We hope this collection of diverse material will therefore support both reflection and learning from each other. It is intended to develop an understanding of the issues of equality, participation and inclusion for children and young people in diverse contexts and raise questions about future policy and practice.

Between 2000 and 2010 a series of UK government-led policy agendas including Every Child Matters (DfES 2004), Getting it Right for Every child (Scottish Executive 2006), Youth Matters (DfES 2005) and the Children’s Plan (DCSF 2007) attempted to shape services for children and young people. With such grand intentions as “improving the outcomes for all children and young people” (Every Child Matters 2004) or making “England the best place in the world for children and young people to grow up” (DCSF 2007), striving for equality, participation and social inclusion appeared central to the policy drive (Milbourne 2009). In reality, what we have witnessed is the emerging gap developed between these policy intentions and the real experiences of young people ‘on the margins’ (Milbourne 2009; Reay 2008; Sheppard et al. 2008). This collection of chapters draws on the latter in order to provide clearer insights into the complexities and tensions surrounding the struggle for social justice. In an ever changing political climate the perspectives of those facing or responding to exclusion will remain, in our view, the more robust and meaningful commentary on the issues.

In editing this book, we have drawn on a number of assumptions and theoretical positions to underpin the diverse contributions and to provide some cohesion to a context in which to explore ideas of equality, participation and inclusion. These assumptions have also informed the choice of material for the collection. The first principle to guide our thinking is that “we make no claim for scientific neutrality, indeed we are explicit that our interest stems from a concern for social justice” (Lloyd, Stead, Jordan and Norris in this edition p. 164). We therefore use the international human rights agenda, in particular the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (United Nations 1989) as a starting position. This means that we believe the development of inclusive communities, provision and services in which all children can participate is fundamental to the pursuit of equality. In these contexts difference is valued and young people receive the support they require as individuals to participate on their own terms.

We also recognize that participation and inclusion do not mean the same to everyone. The young people who share their perspectives in this book have some views in common but also have different visions about what inclusion means to them. Not only can views of equality, participation and inclusion take different forms but they are also ideas that are continually evolving and developing. This development unfolds as we learn from stories of exclusion and innovative ways of overcoming barriers to participation. The thinking behind this book is to make a contribution to the process of development whilst holding onto fundamental underpinning principles: valuing diversity; tackling discrimination on the basis of difference; and listening to the voice of everyone – as challenging as that may seem.

A second concept that frames the collection is that being inclusive requires social change rather than an individual having to assimilate into any one dominant group. Communities have to look at themselves and ask the question “how do we change so that more people can participate?” Inclusion does not mean joining in on other people’s terms but it does mean that every new challenge to our idea of inclusivity is met with a positive response; it means the process of change needs to be valued by everyone and is seen to enrich the experience of all involved. Consequently, although the chapters often focus on individual experiences they are not simply asking us to think about individual solutions. Common threads throughout the book are questioning the social mechanisms that have led to an exclusionary practice, and searching for ways to change oppressive attitudes and organizational structures.

This position emerges from our understanding of the social model of disability (Oliver 1983, 1990). However this collection has developed from the first edition in that it acknowledges that issues relating to equality, participation and inclusion impact beyond one excluded group, across multiple socially constructed groupings. In this book we bring together the experiences of children and young people marginalized because of their ethnicity, gender, class, sexuality, impairments and socio-economic status. We also present views from those who have been excluded because of the ways they have been labelled by those in positions of power or because of their cultural heritage. It is important to emphasize that the compilation of material for the book has not been driven by trying to work through a list of groups who were considered likely to experience exclusion. In some ways we have been restricted to grouping children and young people together because this is the way that research is carried out. However a fundamental position we assume is that young people are multidimensional individuals, a composite of gender, ethnicity, cultural background, sexuality, impairments, physicality, material resources and so on (Benjamin in this edition).Therefore we are concerned here with all children and young people, as we listen to their views on their situation and thinking about how their perspectives differ and cross-over.

In these chapters we wanted to acknowledge the ongoing change to the delivery of children and young people’s services in the UK that has taken place since 2004, with the emphasis on professionals working across service boundaries and the development of integrated teams. Therefore we have chosen to highlight some support services as examples that have developed within this new culture to make a positive response to equality issues (see Maggie Teague or Ann Workman and Jeremy Pickard in this edition). Such changing cultures challenge all of us to think differently, whether we are a practitioner or young person, parent or advocate. However we believe that collaboration is a central element of inclusive practice because professional boundaries often become another barrier for young people to negotiate. From the perspective of encouraging equality, participation and inclusion, the changes to service delivery should be seen as an opportunity rather than a threat.

When people are prepared to work together and learn from each other, the results are often innovative. In our view it is unlikely that any support addressing the complexities of equality issues will have any significant impact without creative thinking. Professionals must be prepared to look beyond their traditions, their training and their job descriptions and move towards changing the systems and settings that exclude and discriminate against young people. We have included in the book the views of practitioners who have begun such a journey.

Innovative responses to supporting young people experiencing exclusion also depend on listening to their views and using their ideas about how things should change. This is fundamental to participation and the development of more inclusive services. Using children’s views should be seen as integral to all levels of providing support: planning; delivery; decision making; and evaluation (11 million 2009). Respecting and acknowledging young people’s role in developing their provision is crucial to bind the relationship between “inclusion, sustainability, participation, trust and empowerment” (Katy Simmons et al. in this edition p. 67). We have endeavoured to show such respect in this book by keeping the young person’s voice at the heart of the narrative.

The chapters

The chapters are organised into four sections that move thematically from making proposals for change to considering supportive responses that have tried to make things happen in a different way. As editors we have also added brief introductory and summary comments to each chapter to highlight issues that seemed significant to us. Our comments are intended to provide some framework for the collection as a whole as they often refer back to key principles of participation and inclusion that underpin the book. They are not meant to be seen as the final word, but more openings into further enquiry.

The first section, “More than one way”, provides examples of services responding to young people struggling to become part of a community and in doing so highlights that established boundaries have to be crossed. Roy McConkey sets the scene by showing how professionals who once saw themselves working in isolation can reach out to work collaboratively with new colleagues from different backgrounds. They can also shift the context of their work and respond to the privilege of interacting directly with families and local communities. Moving away from an institutionalized approach is a theme developed by Claire Norris and Alison Closs in their chapter. They talk with children with serious medical conditions and their families who are clear that their inclusion and participation in education services depends on schools connecting with the realities and routines of their home life. The chapters exploring the inclusion of children labelled as looked-after (Isabelle Brodie) and young people “with emotional and behavioural difficulties” (John Visser, Ted Cole and Harry Daniels) show that professionals cannot simply transform into taking on broader roles. It takes reflection on their practice coupled with an understanding of the issues facing young people who encounter exclusion and marginalization. These commentators also emphasize that a focus on changing the learning environment rather than “fixing” the learner has to be accepted by any supportive staff.

Both Katy Simmons and Eve Hutton describe in their chapters ways of supporting communities that are founded on taking an untraditional approach. For the Occupational Therapists in Eve Hutton’s research this means leaving their clinic base, working in schools and collaborating with teachers to improve the learning experience for all the children in the school. The Community Mobilisers in Katy Simmons chapter facilitate communities to develop their own support and solutions to the inequalities they face. Listening to what people have to say is central to the project and runs as a common thread through this section. To find “more than one way” to empower inclusion and participation requires listening to those who are traditionally not heard.

In the second section, “Transitions: Coming together”, we look at contexts that are undergoing change as a response to developing inclusion and opening up participation. Cathy Philips and Helen Jenner give voice to the staff of Bangabandhu school as they reflect on their journey as a setting. They highlight how they have developed understandings and practices which have enabled them as a school to respond with confidence to an increasingly diverse population. Establishing shared principles as a prelude to any change is seen as key to the staff valuing the transition process. In Maggie Teague’s chapter building trusting relationships with families as well as within the staff team is critical to the participation of whole community in Deri-View Children’s Centre. In both Bangabandhu and Deri-View respecting and responding to the views of everyone involved are shown as key to ‘coming together’ as change takes place. Tina Cook, John Swain and Sally French also emphasise the importance of this principle in their account of the views of young people as they move from a closing special school into mainstream provision. Their chapter illustrates the real complexities and subtleties at work when transitions to more inclusive practice take place. It is important to look back and learn from the past rather than drive relentlessly forwards.

The final chapter in this section, from Ann Workman and Jeremy Pickard, pick up on many of the previous themes but examine these in the context of the response of professional services undergoing change. Their account of fresh collaborations in a newly created multi-disciplinary team again underlines the importance of developing trust and shared goals so that the people involved can share the process of change together. Along with the other chapters in this section their story reveals the tensions and complexities that can pull any move to greater equality and participation in unintended directions.

The chapters in the next section, “On the margins”, once again through a range of different settings provide perspectives from a diverse range of young people. It is not our intention to suggest that these young people represent groups who are more on the margins than others, nor do they necessarily “cover all the bases”. We have chosen material which we feel represents the voices of young people and those closely involved with them, to try and capture a sense of the overlapping concerns which all young people have, as they seek to establish their identity and maintain agency in their own lives. Our aim is to acknowledge that the ways in which we group young people and how they frequently choose to group themselves creates individual and collective identities which we need to respect and be responsive to. This includes those learners whose ...

Table of contents

• Equality Participation and Inclusion 2
• Contents
• Acknowledgements
• Chapter 1 Introduction
• Part 1 More than one way
• Part 2 Transitions Coming together
• Part 3 On the margins
• Part 4 Thinking differently
• Index