Inclusion has long been recognised for its “in-betweenness” (Corbett, 1997). It is generally recognised as an ongoing process (UNESCO IBE, 2008), an active process “that may never end”(Flem and Keller, 2000). However, the sense of a messy compromise, mixing inclusion and exclusion, can be seen in contrast to a more fluid concept of “continuous struggle” (Allan 2008). The messy compromise is in evidence in policies around those groupings and issues associated with diversity (Black-Hawkins et al 2007) rather than in the hoped for “assault on oppressive vestiges of the past as a way of contributing to alternative futures” (Slee and Allan, 2001, p176). Policies on inclusion have been compromised by the range of marketisation policy initiatives. Within England, for example, this has included the traditionalist national curriculum, standardised testing, league tables and the investment in and development of a range of independent and alternative provision (Slee, 2006, Rix, 2011) resulting in increasing segregated and selective provision (Rix, 2006; Barron et al, 2007). This has coincided with on-going and disproportionate referral of certain ethnic groupings and social-classes to categories for intervention and treatment (Slee, 2008). Intended as a transformative concept, the term ‘inclusion’ and its underpinning lexicon have become subsumed by those within ‘special’ education (Rix, 2011), and within many countries is simply an option within the overall system.

Against this background of compromise and disatisfaction, this study aims to examine how two schools with clear inclusive aspirations and intentions have weathered the last decade. Drawing upon two research visits ten years apart in which the schools were filmed and members of the school community were interviewed, this study reports on their perception of the journey travelled.

Allan, J (2008) Rethinking inclusive education – the philosophers of difference in practice, Springer, Dordrecht Barron, I., Holmes, R., MacLure, M., and Runswick-Cole, K. (2007) Primary schools and other agencies (Primary Review Research Survey 8/2), Cambridge, University of Cambridge Black-Hawkins, K., Florian, L. & Rouse, M. (2007) Achievement and inclusion in schools, Routledge, Oxon Corbett, J. (1999) ‘Inclusive education and school culture’, International Journal of Inclusive Education, 3(1), pp. 53–61. Corbin, J and Strauss, A. (2008) Basics of Qualitative Research; Techniques and Procedures for Developing Grounded Theory (3rd ed), USA; Sage Publications. Flem, A and Keller, C (2000) Inclusion in Norway: a study of ideology in practice European Journal of Special Needs Education, 15, 2, pp 188–205 Rix, J. (2006) From One Professional to Another, in Rix, B. (Ed) All About Us, MENCAP, London pp351-361 Rix, J. (2011) 'Repositioning of special schools within a specialist, personalised educational marketplace - the need for a representative principle', International Journal of Inclusive Education, 15: 2, 263 —279 Rubin, H. & Rubin, I. (2004) Qualitative Interviewing- The Art of Hearing Data, California, Sage Publications Slee, R. & Allan, J. (2001) Excluding the Included: a reconsideration of inclusive education, International Studies in Sociology of Education, 11, 2, p173-191 Slee, R. (2006) Limits to and possibilities for educational reform International Journal of Inclusive Education, 10, 2–3, pp109–119 Slee, R.(2008) 'Beyond special and regular schooling? An inclusive education reform agenda', International Studies in Sociology of Education, 18: 2, 99 — 116 UNESCO IBE (2008) Inclusive education: The way of the future. Conclusions and recommendations of the 48th session fo the International Conference on Education (ICE), Geneva, 25-28 November 2008