Research School Network: Where to start with your school’s inclusion strategy How can school leaders create a purposeful inclusion strategy?

With the deadline fast approaching for the newly required Department for Education (DfE) Inclusion Strategy, many schools are asking the same questions. Inclusion has been high up on the radar for some time but developing a strategy can feel overwhelming when there is so much to consider and the clock is ticking. Discussions debating the following are everywhere:

• How do we ensure that the Inclusion Strategy works alongside the Pupil Premium and School Development strategies, complementing rather than competing with existing priorities?
• How do we draw on the best available evidence, focus on doing fewer things better, and develop a strategy that is owned by all staff?

While the deadline may be fixed, deciding what matters most for your school still requires careful exploration. Rather than trying to address everything at once, the new EEF Guide to Inclusive Teaching and A School’s Guide to Implementation offer practical, evidence-informed tools to help leaders identify priorities and develop an inclusion strategy that reflects their context.

Step 1- Use the Guide to Inclusive Teaching to explore current practice.

The EEF Guide to Inclusive Teaching, published in July 2026, introduces a definition of inclusive teaching alongside a two-part model, encouraging leaders to consider two complementary aspects of inclusive teaching:

1. Universal approaches that are likely to be especially important for pupils with additional needs.
2. Adaptations and additional support that might also be needed by some pupils.

How might the two-part model be used by leaders?

Importantly, this is not a stepped approach. Rather, it’s two key considerations that support professional discussion and reflection.

A good place to start is to consider the key questions linked to the model and take the time to hear from all staff. This can help leaders build a strong ​‘explore’ platform to accurately diagnose priorities, when teams can feel overloaded with potential priorities.

At a conference recently, a speaker talked about the importance of asking ​‘Where does the knowledge gets stuck?’ in regard to pupils with additional needs. Reflecting on this question can help ensure that knowledge is shared and used to inform decisions, rather than being ​‘stuck’ with one or two individuals and missed.

Key questions

• What do we do every day that is especially important for pupils with additional needs?
• What adaptations or additional support might also be needed by some pupils?
• How do we know that they help rather than hinder learning?

By thoroughly exploring inclusive teaching as it currently stands within your school, using the two-part model as a focus and the key questions as a tool, you are likely to develop a clearer understanding of where to start with your Inclusion Strategy.

Take into account the three sections of the DfE report format:

1. Barriers to learning and participation
2. Activity in this academic year
3. Intended outcomes

Step 2: Use the EEF’s implementation to turn priorities into action.

The DfE website signposts schools to the A School’s Guide to Implementation when ​‘developing and delivering an effective inclusion strategy.’ This guidance complements the EEF Guide to Inclusive Teaching and provides helpful tools and considerations.

Although there’s a deadline, it’s vital that time is given to the process of Explore and Prepare with staff. The Figure 3 Explore tool can further develop a strong and informed narrative around the priorities, while building the engagement and shared ownership needed to Deliver and Sustain them.

Last but not least, contextual factors shown in Figure 1 also need to be well thought through. We can be hugely ambitious for what we can achieve for our pupils in school but if we don’t realistically consider risks, the strategy will not have the impact that we hoped. No matter how well it has been explored and prepared. Risk considerations may include understanding where knowledge might get stuck, ensuring adequate training time for staff and building the correct systems and structures to support and influence the change.

Reflections

As leaders, it is so important that we use our knowledge of our schools, alongside the evidence and tools at our disposal, to get these strategies right for the pupils who need them most. We cannot achieve great things with just a few steps, but by taking the time to explore, co-construct and carefully prioritise, we can focus on doing fewer things better whilst uniting all staff. Every step will then be a step in the right direction.

References

Education Endowment Foundation (2026) Guide to Inclusive Teaching.

Education Endowment Foundation (2024) A School’s Guide to Implementation: Guidance Report. London: Education Endowment Foundation.

Department for Education (2026) Developing an inclusion strategy using the inclusive mainstream fund. London: Department for Education.