Factors affecting the development and implementation of education policy for special education in England and Wales is examined in the context of the 1981 Education Act. Factors considered include staff evaluation, the competing definitions of need and good practice, professional and administrative accountability, user rights, politicization, and…

Using the 1981 Education Act of England and Wales as a case study, this paper develops a conceptual framework of education legislation as a significant reference point in the process of negotiation and bargaining that initiates legislation and continues throughout the period of policy implementation. A model of the policy process and the…