Educating Pupils with Intellectual Disabilities in England: Thirty years on

In April 1971, responsibility for the education of all children with intellectual disabilities in England and Wales passed from health to education authorities at national and local level. From that date, no child could be declared to be "ineducable," regardless of the nature or severity of their disability or whether they were living with their families or in residential institutions. The former Junior Training Centres were redesignated as special schools and were administered by the same Local Education Authorities who were responsible for all other publicly funded schools in the community. This paper highlights major developments in the education of children with intellectual disabilities in the light of an early review of progress and problems and subsequent reforms to the education system as a whole. Key issues include access to the National Curriculum, prospects for the education of children with intellectual disabilities in mainstream schools, and the implications of these developments for the professional development of all teachers.