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Recent events such as the Covid-19 pandemic and regional conflicts, longer term political interest in school improvement, and trends towards datafication and performativity (Ball, 2003), form the context in which increasing numbers of children are being denied access to an appropriate education.   In England the number of school exclusions has risen exponentially; 3000 children were permanently excluded in spring 2023, an increase of 64% for primary schools and 37% for secondary schools compared to spring 2022 (National Statistics, 2024). Historically, an education system intended for the masses has promoted standardised practices and normative pressures, thereby restricting the acknowledgement of individuality and difference, and fostering exclusionary practices in schools (Ball and Collet-Sabé, 2021).

This webinar sought to explore tensions between the individual needs of children and their families and the drive for school improvement, in England and internationally, through three papers that considered the lived experiences of children and young people who, for different reasons, were unable to access education and how this exacerbated the situation.

The first paper considered how included children and young people (CYP) with chronic conditions felt at school and how this impacted their educational outcomes and limited their inclusion socially, pastorally, and administratively. Rooted in the belief that we are all equal and that CYP should be at the centre of their education, this study offered a platform for young people to work as ‘collaborators’, to share their unique insights and articulate their vision for change. Using a praxeological methodology, this research explored the lived experiences of these CYP in relation to school and inclusion/exclusion through a ‘collaborator-informed’ approach.

The second paper adopted an international scope to consider the needs of internally displaced people in Nigeria, where forced displacements due to protracted conflicts disrupted schooling, resulting in many children being confined in camps and most displaced children lacking access to any form of education. This situation adversely affected education quality and equitability, and produced high levels of marginalisation. There was a concern for Nigeria’s basic education policy and practice as it related to accessibility for displaced children who resided in camps. Although the children in this research expressed optimism in their desire for education, and viewed it as a means for a brighter future, the lack of accessibility, rejection, or demand for unaffordable tuition fees by some schools remained barriers to the realisation of children’s aspirations.

The last paper considered exclusionary practices in schools more broadly. At a time when a compliant school population focused on academic attainment was a policy imperative, schools had to navigate policy priorities to maintain their market position whilst accommodating an increasingly heterogenous pupil body. This generated varied exclusionary practices (legal and otherwise), including ones that were not recognised as such. Schools were required to evidence an inclusive school ethos, despite funding constraints and beyond admission policies, but how this might be achieved needed to be explored.

By exploring access to education from varied perspectives, we aimed to assist schools in responding to the needs of pupils and families whatever future policy changes might have brought, and underlined the need for relevant research.