A third of disabled children not treated fairly at school

March 12, 2003 in Children, Social care leaders

One in three disabled children are still being treated unfairly
in the education system despite recent laws to prevent
discrimination, according to new research, writes Amy
Taylor.

The survey of disabled children’s parents from charity Contact a
Family finds that, although the Special Educational Needs and
Disability Act 2001 come into force in September to strengthen the
rights of disabled children in schools, discrimination is still
occurring.

The findings, based on almost 1,700 responses to a web-based
survey in January, reveal that more than a third of parents do not
believe their child gets the extra help that they require at
school. A similar number of parents were unaware of the new
legislation.

Contact a Family Education Survey available here