Minister’s pledge on equality in schools

Concerns that schools could be exempt from a duty to promote
equality for disabled children have been allayed.

At the second reading of the Disability Discrimination Bill,
work and pensions secretary Alan Johnson said schools would be
required to take action to improve outcomes for disabled
children.

Under the bill, all public sector bodies will have a general
duty to promote disability equality but key public bodies,
including schools, will have a specific duty to produce explicit
plans to tackle discrimination and create mechanisms to consult
effectively with disabled people.