The history of self-advocacy in England has not been recorded, other than the stories of individuals and of some individual groups. We, therefore, decided to interview some leaders of the self-advocacy movement and some people who were allies and supporters. Three researchers, two self-advocates and one academic, interviewed 11 self-advocate…

This research explores how adolescent females who have been diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) experience secondary education in England and make sense of their identity. Within schools, responsibility for supporting this population is placed in the hands of teachers, though prior research suggests that teachers feel…

Changes to special educational needs and disability (SEND) legislation in England were implemented in 2014. Here, we evaluate the impact of these changes from the perspective of 80 autistic young people aged 16-25 years. Using an online survey and/or interviews, we examined young people's views on three key principles of the SEND reforms: the help…

This paper investigates how specialist teachers of learners with vision impairment (i.e. teachers who have had specific and/or additional teacher training in the area of vision impairment education) in Turkey and England conceptualise their roles in supporting learners with vision impairment (VI) using Bronfenbrenner's ecological systems theory as…

Deafblind children and young people often perform poorly in education and social settings. The extent of this attainment gap is unknown. Following the Joanna Briggs protocol, a scoping review was conducted with the aim of establishing the barriers to and facilitators of academic and social success for this cohort. A database search was conducted…

This article brings together two distinct but interrelated fields: human rights education (HRE) and safeguarding. It endeavours to show that the former can be beneficial for the efficacy of the latter. By extending an argument put forward recently that for HRE to be effective it must enable children to recognise and respond to lived human rights…

Child participation currently holds a high profile within the field of educational psychology and has been the subject of increasing interest and research. The aim of this paper is to consider the potential merit in orienting the focus beyond participation in planning and decision-making and towards self-advocacy. Self-advocacy is an essential…

Background: Previous research has found that people with learning disabilities are not given prescription information that is tailored to their needs. We wanted to find out people's information requirements. Materials and Methods: A questionnaire was co-produced by the authors and consultants with learning disabilities. It asked what information…

Background: This paper tells the story of Central England People First's (CEPF) History Project. Method: This was an inclusive research project, owned and controlled by members of CEPF which sought to chart its 21-year history, 1990-2012. Results: It illustrates both the strengths of such a project and some of the challenges. Conclusion: It…

This paper presents findings from a qualitative research project on an English self-advocacy organization. In light of recent political and economic developments that have threatened the sustainability of a number of self-advocacy groups for people with intellectual disability, I seek to explore how one particular organization managed to survive…

Background: The role of the support worker in self-advocacy groups for people with intellectual disability is pivotal in setting the scene for empowerment. However, despite the growing importance of the role, it has attracted very little scrutiny. Method: The study developed an inclusive team approach working alongside researchers labelled with…

This is about research an Oxfordshire Self-Advocacy Organisation did into annual health checks for people with learning disabilities. The self-advocates worked with Oxfordshire's Primary Care Health Facilitator and a Professor to find out why only one in four people in our area had a health check in 2009/10 (Emerson & Glover 2010a,b). The…

Almost one in five pupils in England have been identified as having special educational needs and there are times when other children will also need some extra help and support with their learning. Many children with special educational needs (SEN) in mainstream schools do not make as much progress as they could. This is sometimes because of their…

From consideration of children's rights in general and equal opportunities for disabled children in particular, it is important to consult children about barriers and supports to learning and participation. Finding appropriate and feasible ways, however, to incorporate this into educational programmes for younger children can present challenges.…

This paper looks at the history of self advocacy in England. Self advocacy has helped many people with learning difficulties to speak up and gain more confidence. But now it is associated with Government policy. After Valuing People, people expect self advocacy organizations to speak up for everyone with learning difficulties. This might mean…