Research and analysis

Disabled people's lived experience of education in the UK: an evidence review

Published 29 January 2026

Disabled people’s lived experience of education in the UK: an evidence review

Professor Ben Simmons, Dr Stuart Read, and Dr Anne Parfitt

1. Executive summary

This report reviews evidence on disabled people’s lived experience of education in the UK published between 2010 and 2021. It builds on the findings from the systematic review conducted by the Centre for Disability Studies at the University of Leeds and Disability Rights UK. 

The report focuses on disabled people’s experiences of education covering primary and secondary schooling; further and vocational education; higher education and lifelong learning. The evidence reviewed describes the barriers disabled people face in education. It also looks at examples of reasonable adjustments and inclusive schemes designed to improve educational experiences.

1.1 Methodology

There were 126 resources in the original systematic review database on the topic of education. We excluded 16 of these for reasons such as an inability to locate the full texts. We included 3 more papers to expand on this evidence, which meant we reviewed 113 resources for this report. We assessed these resources to ensure they used a qualitative method and focused on the lived experience of disabled people. The evidence was reviewed and themes and subthemes were identified through a thematic analysis.

As the review focuses on secondary lived experience research, there are some limitations including small sample sizes and limited peer review. Lived experience research gives us a better, but far from complete, understanding of the issues faced by disabled people and people with health conditions in relation to education.

We addressed the following research questions: 

• What barriers do disabled people experience in education, such as in learning and teaching, access and design, attitudes and stigma, or socioeconomic factors?
• What are the impacts of barriers to education on disabled people?
• What are the support options or reasonable adjustments for disabled people in education, such as in relation to educational experience and independence?
• What inclusive schemes, designs, adaptations and services improve (or reduce the barriers) to education for disabled people?

1.2 Summary of findings

The findings of the review highlight several issues for disabled students in the UK.

Staff often lack the knowledge and skills to effectively support disabled learners. This can be due to gaps in their teacher training,  and inconsistent ongoing development. This results in unequal access to support across educational stages.

Students face barriers when moving between educational settings or into employment. There can be insufficient adaptive support and delays in accessing necessary services. This often leads to distress and learning difficulties.

Education systems tend to be inflexible, restricting disabled students’ participation in decision-making. Disabled people’s confidence and outcomes can be improved by:

• tailoring support 
• involving them in developing access arrangements and assessment choices 

Disabled students frequently experience social exclusion and loneliness. This is partly due to the attitudes of their peers, and institutional strategies that limit their chances of friendship and social integration.

Many disabled students do not disclose their impairments because they fear discrimination or stigma. This leads to a lack of support. Creating safe spaces for disclosure is essential for providing appropriate adjustments and support.

In summary, the report highlights that many disabled learners face significant barriers, despite legal and policy commitments. Effective support requires:

• an increase in staff training
• flexible and tailored adjustments
• a systemic shift towards practices that are truly inclusive

Future research should explore diverse impairment experiences and intersectionality to improve educational inclusion.

2. Introduction 

This report reviews evidence on disabled people’s lived experience of education in the UK published between 2010 and 2021. It builds on the findings from the systematic literature review conducted by the Centre for Disability Studies at the University of Leeds and Disability Rights UK. The aim of this report is to better understand disabled people’s lived experience of education in the UK. 

2.1 Policy context

The meaning, purpose and practice of ‘inclusive education’ has been the focus of international debate, universal declarations and policy making for at least 30 years. For example, UNESCO’s Salamanca Statement and Framework for Action (1994)^{[footnote 1]} endorsed inclusive schooling as ‘the most effective means of combating discriminatory attitudes, creating welcome communities, building an inclusive society and achieving education for all’. The Convention of the Rights of Person with Disabilities (CRPD) states that inclusion can ‘maximize academic and social development’ (UN, 2006: 17).^{[footnote 2]} Article 24 of the Convention also states not only that all countries should provide disabled people with access to education without discrimination, but that:

persons with disabilities are not excluded from the general education system on the basis of disability, and that children with disabilities are not excluded from free and compulsory primary and secondary education on the basis of disability [and that]…persons with disabilities can access an inclusive, quality, free primary and secondary education on an equal basis with others in the communities in which they live.

These messages are consistent with other UNESCO declarations, such as the Declaration on Cultural Diversity which claims that ‘policies for the inclusion and participation of all citizens [act] as guarantees of social cohesion, the vitality of civil society and peace (UNESCO, 2002: 13).^{[footnote 3]} More recently, the Incheon Declaration and Framework for Action declared that inclusive education was ‘essential for peace, tolerance, [and] human fulfilment’ (UNESCO, 2015: 7),^{[footnote 4]} while Goal 4 of the Sustainable Development Goals is to ‘ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all’.^{[footnote 5]}

Despite ongoing international advocacy and support for inclusive education as a human right, national and international research continues to describe the exclusion and segregation of disabled people in the education system, as noted in the UN Disability and Development Report (UN, 2018: 73):^{[footnote 6]}

[…] too many persons with disabilities continue to be denied this fundamental right due to numerous barriers and obstacles to accessible education, including prejudice and discrimination against those with disabilities, the lack of qualified teachers to accommodate the needs of persons with disabilities as well as inaccessible schools and educational materials.

This report is set against the above policy and human rights background. It aims to provide evidence on the state of disabled people’s participation and inclusion in education in the UK by conducting a thematic review of research published between 2010 and 2021. The evidence review is aims to address these 4 research questions:

1. What barriers do disabled people experience in education? (such as in learning and teaching, access and design, attitudes and stigma, or socioeconomic factors)

2. What are the impacts of barriers to education on disabled people?

3. What are the support options or reasonable adjustments for disabled people in education, such as in relation to educational experience and independence?

4. What inclusive schemes, designs, adaptations and services improve (or reduce the barriers) to education for disabled people?

2.2 Methodology

The Cabinet Office’s Disability Unit commissioned a systematic review to be conducted by the Centre for Disability Studies at the University of Leeds, in partnership with Disability Rights UK. Its purpose was to establish the existing evidence base on the lived experience of disabled people in the UK. The review focused on research in the UK, at national, regional, or local level. It used systematic searching of bibliographic databases and targeted searching of the grey literature, including research led by disabled people’s organisations. Around 15,000 potential sources were identified. After thorough review, around 1,500 appropriate sources were sorted into 13 policy relevant categories for further review. This base of evidence was then mapped thematically. 

This report further examines this, and other evidence, with a particular focus on disabled people’s experiences of education. 126 resources, published from 2010 onwards, were provided in the initial systematic review. 16 of these resources were excluded for reasons such as an inability in locating the full texts. 3 additional papers were included to expand on this evidence base, which led to a total of 113 resources being reviewed for this report. The report structures the evidence review around the 4 research questions and identifies key themes and evidence gaps. 

3. Question 1: Barriers in education

What barriers do disabled people experience in education, such as in learning and teaching, access and design, attitudes and stigma, or socioeconomic factors?

The research reviewed for this report described a range of barriers that negatively affected disabled people’s educational experiences. The barriers are described as being harmful to disabled people’s self-esteem and lead to a lack of appropriate support and inequalities of educational outcome. For example, limited staff knowledge stemming from a lack of training opportunities led to students receiving inconsistent support. Students were particularly concerned about a lack of appropriate support during summative assessments such as university exams. 

The research demonstrated significant and ongoing issues related to the topic of transition, such as when students move from primary school to secondary school, or from college to university. Some disabled people avoided disclosing their impairments to members of teaching staff and peer groups because of concerns about prejudice.^{[footnote 7]} These kinds of barriers may be described as ‘disabling’, that is, preventing students with impairments from thriving in educational settings. 

3.1 Poor staff knowledge, low expectations and limited training opportunities

The research shows that teaching staff in schools,^{[footnote 8]} colleges and universities sometimes lack the knowledge and skills to effectively support students, for example, Deaf students.^{[footnote 9]} This results in disabled people receiving inconsistent support during their education. Teaching staff lack knowledge of the support needs of different impairment groups,^{[footnote 10][footnote 11]} and struggle to adapt teaching, assessment, and associated materials.^{[footnote 12]} Poor staff knowledge about special educational needs, disability and inclusion stems from limited training opportunities, such as during initial teacher training^{[footnote 13]} and post-qualification professional development. Similar challenges exist in the further and higher education sectors, with college and university staff receiving limited or no training.^{[footnote 14]}

Teaching staff sometimes had low expectations of students including Deaf and dyslexic students.^{[footnote 15][footnote 16]} Staff lacked optimism about students’ futures and actively discouraged students’ aspirations.^{[footnote 17][footnote 18]} Evidence also shows that there is a disconnect between the needs of autistic students  and the level of support that was provided, with students being told that their expectations for support were too high.^{[footnote 19][footnote 20]} For example, some dyslexic students were enrolled on additional needs programmes, regardless of their academic ability.^{[footnote 21]} In addition, while access to disability-related support was valued by students, it was felt that staff did not necessarily understand why this support was needed,^{[footnote 22]} even though it may have been documented in students’ learning or access plans.^{[footnote 23]} Instead of leading on the education of disabled students, teachers sometimes relied heavily on support staff such as teaching assistants to plan, teach and assess students.^{[footnote 24]} Autistic students reported wanting more individualised support from the teacher than was typically provided and were frustrated about limited time spent with the teacher and a lack of adaptive teaching.^{[footnote 25][footnote 26]} 

Students did not always feel like they could approach educators to express concerns. For example, people with hearing impairments sometimes experienced difficulties in communicating their needs to members of staff which in turn made their feelings of exclusion worse.^{[footnote 27]} Students felt misunderstood and worried about being blamed for their impairments.^{[footnote 28]}

3.2 Inaccessible assessment

Assessment was a central theme in the research reviewed. Students described traditional assessment methods as inaccessible. For example, some autistic students found the language and wording of exam questions confusing,^{[footnote 29]} and students who experience specific learning difficulties, such as dyslexia, sometimes spent significantly longer writing essays than their peers.^{[footnote 30]} Students suggested that a choice of assessment options, such as presentations, practical demonstrations, and portfolios, would allow them to better demonstrate what they have learned during their studies. 

But some studies suggest that education providers routinely fail to provide alternative forms of assessments which in turn disadvantages disabled students.^{[footnote 31]} Moreover, students reported a lack of support during assessments, such as not being provided with extra time in exams, and limited options to shape access arrangements.^{[footnote 32]} Exams were perceived to have a detrimental impact on students’ mental health and wellbeing, including raised levels of anxiety that negatively affect exam performance.^{[footnote 33]} Students reported a lack of involvement in decision-making regarding the focus of education and adaptations to teaching and assessment.^{[footnote 34]}

3.3 Disclosing disability

Disabled students were sometimes reluctant to identify as ‘disabled’ for different reasons.^{[footnote 35][footnote 36]} For example, some autistic students opted to hide their diagnosis to prevent their disability status being viewed as their defining feature, and being seen as different from other students and potentially subject to prejudice from non-autistic people. Other research has shown that certain students may choose not to see themselves as disabled at all, or being strategic in how they express their condition, such as in terms of balancing both openness regarding their condition, but also remaining guarded regarding who they tell.^{[footnote 37]} For example, disabled students may choose not to disclose their impairment to universities and providers of professional placements such as hospitals.^{[footnote 38]} 

Students worried that telling universities about their impairment would result in stigma and that their fitness to practise, such as trainee doctors, would be called into question.^{[footnote 39]} Some students experienced negative consequences for disclosing their impairment to university staff, with reports of staff not believing and refusing to, or not having the skills, to provide adjustments and support.^{[footnote 40]}

Disabled students who experienced challenges to their identity felt isolated and described having nowhere to turn for help.^{[footnote 41]} Members of staff reported reluctance to make adjustments to teaching and assessment believing that such adjustments would make degrees easier, particularly for those training in medicine and nursing.^{[footnote 42]} Similarly, disabled people worried about being perceived as lazy and incompetent if they asked for adjustments to be made, and sometimes opted out of options, such as using audio recording equipment in seminars and lectures, because of the perceived stigma that resulted from this.^{[footnote 43]}

3.4 Transitions

The theme of transitions relates to the experience of students who are moving from one educational setting to another, such as from primary to secondary school, from mainstream school to special school, or moving from education to employment. Barriers that prevented students from transitioning, or moving from one setting to another, included a lack of support from schools, colleges, universities, and a lack of disability awareness among career advisors.^{[footnote 44][footnote 45][footnote 46]} Students were expected to be self-sufficient in seeking help and support, even though they sometimes lacked knowledge, skills or confidence to locate and approach transition support staff (where such support existed).^{[footnote 47][footnote 48]}

Students were worried about the uncertainty of moving from, or leaving behind, the school system that is familiar to them.^{[footnote 49]} For example, students reported concerns of having to make new friends, as well as the potential for bullying as they went from primary to secondary education.^{[footnote 50][footnote 51]} Further, young people with a specific language impairment (SLI) also spoke of the differing relationships and culture of compulsory education to further education.^{[footnote 52]} They described how there was a relative safety and protection within schooling, which developed into independence and autonomy within further education.^{[footnote 53]} But concerns were raised that disabled young people may not have opportunities for choice and autonomy in making decisions about their lives after compulsory education.^{[footnote 54][footnote 55]}

Disabled people described a lack of accessible information about schools, and there are problems with education providers expecting diverse students to fit into a fixed or unchanging system.^{[footnote 56][footnote 57]} Students who have transitioned from mainstream primary schools to special secondary schools have experienced social isolation.^{[footnote 58]} Students report a lack of access to health services when they first transition to university. For example, students with mental health support needs find themselves in a more demanding place when at university, but transitioning between mental health services is slow and requires a lot of time and energy from the student.^{[footnote 59]} Autistic students reported being too busy to look after their own health and wellbeing at university, while also having little input from student services.^{[footnote 60][footnote 61]}

Particular barriers were experienced by disabled students as they transitioned into university, and this began with the application process itself. For example, while students reported a desire to go to university, some felt restricted in which universities they could apply to, due to what they perceived was a lack of preparedness from universities in supporting the needs of disabled students.^{[footnote 62]} This in turn reduced the number of institutions that were available for the students when compared to non-disabled students. Students with vision impairments also reported how online systems of applying to university,^{[footnote 63]} and to applying for Disabled Students’ Allowance (DSA) were not accessible, and paper versions were often not sent in formats suitable for people who were blind.^{[footnote 64]}

The DSA process in particular raised issues of organising appropriate software and hardware for study, as well as working with agencies should students require non-medical support such as note taking.^{[footnote 65]} Others reported that the provision of support was not suitable, or the procedures for applying for DSA and university assistance were too slow and often disconnected.^{[footnote 66]} For example, with regards to university disability support services and the implementation of support plans, students with vision impairments recognised their importance for accessible study, but challenges emerged in getting support, including barriers in accessing course materials and books in accessible formats before starting.^{[footnote 67]} The interdependent nature of individual students’ internal university processes and DSA, with one application seemingly being contingent on the success of the other, caused stress, mental health problems and overall disaffection regarding trusting higher education institutions and government agencies.^{[footnote 68]} In certain cases, support may not be in place for the student at the start of their course.^{[footnote 69]}

Additional barriers were reported by students with vision impairments as they navigated their university studies, such as individualised reasonable adjustments were not provided consistently.^{[footnote 70]} Some students expressed wanting support with time management and academic development while they were at university, and being unable to access this support.^{[footnote 71]}

Several studies reported the need for whole-institution support. For example, in the case of Deaf students, having British Sign Language implemented throughout an organisation was important, such as during professional practice for nursing students.^{[footnote 72]} Management who learn to sign are seen as managers who value diversity and this can filter down to all levels of an organisation, creating an accessible language environment, and allowing hearing and non-hearing members of staff to communicate and learn from one another.^{[footnote 73]}

Other barriers reported by disabled students included difficulties in managing sensory processing, such as in terms of managing noise from other students,^{[footnote 74]} and many different smells and tastes.^{[footnote 75][footnote 76]} In addition, autistic students reported concerns with everyday living while at university, in that they had to develop strategies to allow themselves to live at university, and were concerned when independent living was not straightforward, which in turn affected their health and wellbeing.^{[footnote 77]}

There was also a disconnect between the level of awareness students and staff had towards daily living at university, with university staff demonstrating little awareness of the issues that affect disabled students’ daily living at university, and in turn, their ability to study.^{[footnote 78][footnote 79]} Finally, unfortunately, after graduation, disabled students may be at increased risk of unstable employment or being unemployed.^{[footnote 80]}

3.5 Peer relationships

Students who had friends in school, college and university described them as vitally important to their experiences of education, and a source of informal support.^{[footnote 81][footnote 82]} But not all disabled students experienced friendship, and with some students reporting loneliness and isolation,^{[footnote 83][footnote 84][footnote 85]} particularly in regard to the more social aspects of school, such as playtimes and lunchtimes.^{[footnote 86][footnote 87]} Other students including autistic people and people with learning disabilities described being bullied and shunned by peers,^{[footnote 88][footnote 89]} resulting in a decline in mental health and self-esteem.^{[footnote 90]} For example, students with hearing impairments may encounter hurtful comments about their hearing loss, and in turn, may feel segregated and singled out.^{[footnote 91]}

Autistic university students were interested in forming social relationships with other students, but they sometimes experienced difficulty due to the size of university, and because they wanted advice and support on how to engage socially with others.^{[footnote 92]}

Regardless of educational level, some students accepted their own situation by claiming that other students were worse off than them. Students and staff expressed concern that teaching assistants can prevent friendships forming, and the reliance on spaces such as individual workstations resulted in further physical separation between disabled students and their peer group.^{[footnote 93][footnote 94]} Similarly, parents are sometimes relied upon by schools to support their children during school trips, and this can prevent friendships from forming.^{[footnote 95]}

3.6 Additional barriers

In addition to the above core themes, the research describes a range of additional barriers that negatively affect the educational experiences of disabled people including Deaf people.^{[footnote 96]} For example, studies have identified ongoing problems with regards to a lack of physical accessibility of educational buildings, such as a lack of ramps and lifts affecting the experience of autistic students.^{[footnote 97][footnote 98]}

Other barriers to learning include limited communication environments for Deaf people,^{[footnote 99]} such as schools, colleges and universities failing to provide effective hearing loop support^{[footnote 100]} and British Sign Language interpreters.^{[footnote 101]} Delays in assessment, diagnosis and receiving support have also been reported. One study showed that young people were not aware that they had a Statement of Need.^{[footnote 102]} Families experienced delays in receiving Education, Health and Care Plans^{[footnote 103]} and students report that universities are slow to identify the support needs of learners and put in place appropriate provision.^{[footnote 104][footnote 105]}

There are also ongoing tensions about the language of disability, particularly in higher education, where disabled students sometimes prefer to avoid terminology associated with disability.^{[footnote 106]} For example, one study demonstrated how terms like ‘disabled student’ and ‘student with disabilities’ may not be liked by students. Instead, terms that do not directly discuss disability, but raise individual needs may be preferred.^{[footnote 107]}

4. Question 2: Impacts of barriers

What are the impacts of barriers to education on disabled people?

Disabled people described a number of impacts resulting from the barriers they encountered within education. These equated to barriers stemming from disclosure of an impairment and the potentially frustrating experience of having to request and access reasonable adjustments. Barriers also emerged through the reasonable adjustments themselves, such as in creating a possible sense of difference from non-disabled students. Additional concerns were also raised regarding the general lack of support within education, and the implications of this lack of support. Finally, disabled people described how their mental health and wellbeing correlated with their educational experience.

4.1 Barriers stemming from disclosure

A central theme in the research concerned fear around the impact of disclosing impairment to other students and staff. For example, the research contains accounts of disabled people avoiding telling friends about their impairments to avoid stigma and bullying.^{[footnote 108][footnote 109]} The research also contains accounts of disabled people who were mocked and victimised by their peers,^{[footnote 110][footnote 111]} with the existence or severity of their impairment being refuted.^{[footnote 112]} This resulted in Deaf young people’s  negative self-image, including feeling different from the rest of their cohort and ashamed of their bodies, leading to a deterioration in their mental health and wellbeing.^{[footnote 113]}

Disabled people who avoided disclosing their impairments to staff expressed concerns about staff responses to the news and being treated unfairly.^{[footnote 114][footnote 115]} For example, university applicants worried that disclosing such information would result in limited opportunities to study for a degree.^{[footnote 116]} Students who had secured places at university expressed concerns that any reference to their impairment, for example dyslexia, would lead to questions regarding fitness to study and fitness to practise (particularly in medicine and nursing).^{[footnote 117]} A lack of disclosure resulted in a lack of support, and disabled people reported working harder than non-disabled peers, which resulted in burnout, self-doubt, and a feeling of inadequacy.

While the research demonstrates that schools, colleges, and universities can make a positive difference to the lives of disabled people if support is provided, there are also significant examples of education providers not making effective changes to practice, resulting in psychological harm and academic failure. For example, universities sometimes failed to relay information about student support needs to academic staff and examination officers, resulting in a lack of reasonable adjustments being provided, leading to a decline academic performance and a compromised degree grade. Sometimes, tutors were made aware of the support needs of students but failed to make changes to teaching and assessment. 

Accounts of students experiencing undermining comments from teaching staff results in students being reluctant to disclose information in the future while also avoiding seeking support.^{[footnote 118]} Students described fearing tutors’ perception of them if they missed class, and some described missing doctor’s appointments to come to class. Universities were described as institutions that failed to adapt to meet the needs of students, resulting in students having to adapt, work harder and longer hours, and there were fewer choices for students with additional needs, such as regarding their choice of dissertation supervisor.^{[footnote 119]}

4.2 Accessing reasonable adjustments and navigating barriers

Accessing reasonable adjustments was typically not a straightforward process for disabled students.^{[footnote 120]} Unfortunately, students have a patchy understanding of what their rights were under the Equality Act 2010^{[footnote 121]} in terms of requesting and accessing reasonable adjustments. To successfully receive reasonable adjustments, the onus appears to be placed on the individual themselves in terms of being able to fight for and justify their needs, such as when studying at university.^{[footnote 122]} University students may also be expected to find their own information regarding reasonable adjustments, which may be a difficult task to do in practice if they had typically been provided with the relevant support information while in compulsory education.

While these experiences are contemporary, these same accounts are also shared from disabled people discussing their historical experiences of education.^{[footnote 123]} One study described how participation in mainstream education was sometimes problematic due to teacher concerns that if reasonable adjustments were to be implemented, this would risk affecting the educational standards for the rest of the cohort.^{[footnote 124]} In other words, issues encountered by disabled people would be perceived in terms of impairment and difference being the cause of barriers, rather than the denial of reasonable adjustments.^{[footnote 125]}

While disabled people with historical experiences of education sought to challenge these negative perceptions, they still encountered personal costs, such as through an internalised blaming of the barriers they were facing.^{[footnote 126]}

4.3 Adjustments that create barriers

While some disabled people experienced positive changes after reasonable adjustments had been made, others such as individuals with dyspraxia in a study stated that they felt that the support on offer created new barriers to overcome.^{[footnote 127]} For example, students whose workstations were physically separated from the class spent less time with peers.^{[footnote 128]}

Similarly, a high level of one-to-one support from a teaching assistant was described as resulting in stigma from peers, a decline in student confidence and embarrassment.^{[footnote 129]} Students in receipt of low-vision aids felt that they stood out from their peers, and that staff did not understand the social impact that the aids resulted in.^{[footnote 130]}

When navigating the environments of educational spaces, disabled students may be prevented from accessing learning environments in an equitable way.^{[footnote 131]} For example, physical infrastructure changes, such as a ramp to enter an educational building, may be provided as an adjustment to address the barriers associated with stair access. While this change potentially makes the area more accessible, students who require use of the ramp will be expected to use a different entrance to the rest of their cohort, which marks them as different.^{[footnote 132]}

Disabled students raised the question of why all students could not use the same facilities. This is also true of how educational institutions operate in terms of their culture.^{[footnote 133]} For example, within higher education, while reasonable adjustments may be considered for supporting students with dyslexia-related difficulties, such as in how they complete assignments, challenges may still emerge, such as in terms of experiencing difficulties through being categorised as needing additional support, in a way that is not encountered by their non-disabled cohort. In other words, students who require reasonable adjustments for assignments may be conflicted in terms of whether accessing this support challenges their legitimacy to be a university student.^{[footnote 134]}

4.4 Lack of support

A large generic theme was lack of support and the impact of this.^{[footnote 135]} Staff who support people with learning disabilities had low expectations about their future prospects, and this correlated with people with learning disabilities experiencing fear of failure once they leave school.^{[footnote 136]} Some disabled people experienced a lack of support to help them identify symptoms of distress and low mood, which in turn affects psychological help-seeking behaviours.^{[footnote 137]} A lack of friends was also a sub-theme, suggesting that schools did not do enough to support student’s social circles.^{[footnote 138]} Some students relied on friends to help them access and learn about technology, but students who did not have friends were excluded from the latest apps and software packages.^{[footnote 139]}

Another example of a lack of support was discussed in relation to delays in receiving diagnoses, such as dyslexia, with some students only being able to receive diagnosis after primary school.^{[footnote 140]} Students with a delayed diagnosis negatively compared themselves to their classmates in terms of academic achievement.^{[footnote 141]} A general lack of support in education is reported to create distress and negatively affect student performance, resulting in fewer opportunities (and less motivation) to continue in education after compulsory education.^{[footnote 142]}

A lack of opportunities to engage in decision-making, such as regarding curriculum, teaching and assessment, often results in less engagement and attendance.^{[footnote 143]} Transportation to and from school can be distressing for some students, and there is a lack of time at the beginning of the day for students to transition into lessons after a school journey.^{[footnote 144]} Universities career services also create barriers insofar as they fail to provide accessible services, such as for autistic students, meaning that certain groups have less access to skills and knowledge required to secure graduate employment.^{[footnote 145]}

4.5 Mental health and wellbeing linked to education

Disabled students reported experiencing emotional difficulties as a consequence of their educational experience, such as depression and anxiety.^{[footnote 146]} For example, autistic girls spoke of being anxious to go to school and avoided it where possible,^{[footnote 147]} with some going as far as saying that they hated their school experience.^{[footnote 148][footnote 149]} Some students reported wanting to avoid subjects that were likely to cause difficulty, as well as situations that made them feel inadequate. An example of this is students who reported experiencing considerable anxiety when being asked to read in front of others in their class.^{[footnote 150]}

Disabled students also experienced anxiety and stress surrounding academic attainment, examinations, and homework performance. Added stress was experienced through students perceiving pressures to compare their academic attainment to their classmates, which may overtly highlight their lower standing. Here, students may experience negative self-perceptions, such as anger and frustration directed at their reading and writing performance, and self-torment regarding how they could have performed better.^{[footnote 151][footnote 152]}

These students experienced difficulties in demonstrating their knowledge and understanding, in that they felt they knew more than they were able to demonstrate in class.^{[footnote 153]} This exacerbated their sense of anxiety, along with increased fatigue and headaches due to having to work harder than others for exams. There is a risk that self-perceptions only start to improve once disabled children have finished their compulsory education, as they move away from reminders of how they were perceived, and perceived themselves to be, struggling academically.

Disabled students may experience difficulties in accessing the support they need, or may not want to access this support. For example, some participants may opt not to use reasonable adjustments like writing aids as these can be stigmatising,^{[footnote 154][footnote 155]} which may exacerbate feelings of difference and poor mental health.^{[footnote 156]} Others may choose to look for positive and negative outlets to help relieve their experiences of education.^{[footnote 157]} Examples of these strategies included  dyslexic students engaging in leisure and creative arts activities, but also harming behaviours, such as self-harming.^{[footnote 158]}

But some disabled students reported positive mental health and wellbeing due to their educational experience.^{[footnote 159]} For example, college students described how the opportunity to learn can create a sense of enjoyment, as well as feeling more hopeful and feeling absorbed and stimulated by studying and mixing with other students.^{[footnote 160]} These students also shared how they experienced intellectual growth, and in turn, may have encountered changes in how they see themselves.^{[footnote 161]} For this positive experience to occur, college students recognised the importance of maintaining positive mental health, such as protecting against feelings of boredom, and advocating feelings of safety with other students who they encounter during their studies.

5. Question 3: Support and reasonable adjustments

What are the support options or reasonable adjustments for disabled people in education, such as in relation to educational experience and independence?

The Equality Act 2010^{[footnote 162]} specifies that the education sector should make reasonable adjustments in the following 3 ways:

1. Make changes to physical infrastructure to allow disabled people to access a building or space 

2. Make changes to the way existing educational practice happens, so that disabled people are better able to participate 

3. Provide additional educational support or aids 

Where examples of reasonable adjustments or support options were provided in the data, these were commonly focused on making changes to the way existing educational practice happens, or the provision of additional educational aids. Some studies also shared how disabled people identified their need for support or reasonable adjustments. But evidence of positive examples of reasonable adjustments were limited, particularly in comparison to the barriers that were reported regarding lack of reasonable adjustment access in research question 1. This might be because the term ‘reasonable adjustment’ was not commonly used in the reviewed studies, despite the studies detailing the provision of support.

5.1 Identifying disabled people’s reasonable adjustment needs, such as Education, Health and Care Plans, statements of SEND, and entitlement to support

There were several examples of how disabled people and teaching staff evidenced the need for reasonable adjustments.^{[footnote 163]} Legal documents such as Education, Health and Care Plans and, formerly, statements of SEND, were deemed by teaching staff to be high status and influenced the nature and organisation provision that could be provided, such as the amount of time disabled young people spent with a teaching assistant who could help their learning through one-to-one support.^{[footnote 164][footnote 165]} Without the additional funding which is currently accessed through an Education, Health and Care Plan, teaching staff believe that disabled young people are less likely to receive support.

Another example shared previously in this report involved disabled people disclosing their own needs. A third was the use of particular flags designed to alert others of disabled people’s needs for reasonable adjustments. For example, one study described a card system, whereby disabled students had cards which described their reasonable adjustment needs.^{[footnote 166]} Students would show this card to their educator, which would in turn educate the professional on what their needs were, as well as providing some legitimacy over the request for reasonable adjustments.^{[footnote 167]}

5.2 The role of supportive professionals, such as disability support staff, mentors, and teaching assistants

Several articles described the important role that professionals played in ensuring that disabled students were supported through their education. Professionals who provided support to students were wide ranging, but included: 

• staff within disability support
• university lecturers or tutors
• educational mentors
• teaching assistants

For example, the role of disabled student services in higher education institutions was considered valuable by students wanting to access reasonable adjustments, such as in requesting DSA provision.^{[footnote 168]} Mentors were also discussed as a means of providing tailored support for individual students. For example, with nursing students, a mentor was considered important for helping students understand their needs through constructive feedback, as well as establishing learning outcomes and progress.^{[footnote 169]} Teaching assistants were discussed in several articles. 

Teaching assistants play an important role in the day-to-day support of young disabled people. Teaching assistants have a range of responsibilities, acting as advocates for disabled people, and sometimes leading on academic support by planning lessons and activities, differentiating what the teacher has planned,^{[footnote 170]} and directly teaching disabled people. Teaching assistants also lead on behavioural support, and play an important role with children’s social and emotional needs.^{[footnote 171]}

5.3 Co-ordination, flexibility and choice as effective support 

What constitutes effective support can vary from person to person, but one important approach described in the research is co-ordinated support from different stakeholders. For example, when disabled people required input from a range of professionals, such as occupational therapists, speech and language therapists, transcribers, and student practice learning advisors, then communication and co-ordination between services was deemed essential for successful service provision. Having a central team to work with and co-ordinate services that support both disabled people and education staff resulted in provision being provided more quickly. Effective support included having a proactive team that anticipated problems and put provision in place in advance while ensuring that academic and professional standards are not compromised.^{[footnote 172]}

Effective support also included autistic people having a choice of support.^{[footnote 173]} The research describes a range of simple options such as students being provided with more time to learn, rehearse and become proficient, and providing varied methods of assessment. If varied methods of assessment are offered as standard, such as a choice between presentation, essay or exam, then disabled people may not need to ask for reasonable adjustments as they become standard for all.^{[footnote 174]} 

Students with vision and hearing impairments were also involved  in their own access arrangements which allowed for adjustments to more accurately match the individual support needs,^{[footnote 175]} leading to reduced anxiety, increased self-esteem and better achievement in school. One study suggested that experts who are disabled are better suited to understanding the support needs of disabled students,^{[footnote 176]} suggesting that it would be beneficial to improve recruitment and retention strategies of educational professionals with lived experience of disability, or at least provide opportunities for disabled people to train non-disabled professionals in the sector.

5.4 Adjustments for student learning

Disabled students spoke of many examples of how they had received reasonable adjustments to their educational experience. Some of these reasonable adjustments were general in nature, which meant that they could be used by students with a range of impairments, but others were more specific to the needs of individual students. For example, some autistic learners appreciated the provision of earplugs. Other students valued entering their teaching room early, so that they can be comfortable with their surroundings before the environment became busy, or choosing to sit at the front of the room.^{[footnote 177]}

Reasonable adjustments were provided for students’ general learning during their education. For example, when considering university students, accessible lecture and reading materials were valued,^{[footnote 178]} which included different coloured paper for learners with dyslexia, large print for people with visual impairments, as well as the provision of accessible online resources, and study skills support.^{[footnote 179]}

5.5 Adjustments for assignments and examinations

When considering examinations,^{[footnote 180]} disabled students spoke about being offered extra time to sit their examinations, as well as being provided with different examination options, such as being able to complete their assessment using a computer rather than handwriting.^{[footnote 181]} When students received support or guidance on their assignments, accessible feedback was valued, which included ensuring that the feedback was easy to understand and learn from, as well as being easy to read.^{[footnote 182]} For example, ensuring that guidance was clear,^{[footnote 183]} and feedback was presented as text rather than a scanned picture to be readable with assistive technology.^{[footnote 184]}

5.6 Adjustments to physical infrastructure and wayfinding

Some examples were evidenced in terms of infrastructure being made more accessible for particular impairments, such as installation of ramps.^{[footnote 185]} Other examples described how timetabling could be designed in such a way that allowed for people to attend sessions. When considering clinical practice,^{[footnote 186]} disabled students may be encouraged to visit where they will be completing any placement study, so that potential issues regarding the placement can be addressed in a timely manner.^{[footnote 187]}

6. Question 4: Improving or reducing barriers

What inclusive schemes, designs, adaptations and services improve (or reduce the barriers) to education for disabled people?

The research reviewed for this report contains relatively few examples of inclusive schemes, designs, adaptations and services that best support disabled students. The concept of ‘inclusion’ is typically under-theorised, and studies that make explicit reference to adaptations are small-scale with non-generalisable findings. But taken as a whole, the research contains clear, cross-cutting themes about a range of factors that can improve disabled student’s experience of education. For example, the research contains reference to the importance of teaching assistants who not only know how to support students, but know when the support is no longer needed or desired. 

The quality of relationships between disabled students and peers, and disabled students and staff, has been described as crucial to positive educational experience. Similarly, flexible and co-ordinated services were described as essential, particularly when personal choice was catered for, as this allowed for meaningful, adaptive support. 

6.1 Schemes, designs and adaptations

The research reviewed for this report contains relatively few references to different types of inclusive schemes, designs and adaptations. We searched for approaches at the level of:

• pedagogy (how teachers teach)
• curriculum (the content of what is taught)
• assessment (how people are tested so that they can demonstrate what they have learned)

Research concerning schemes, designs and adaptations typically focus on assessment, and there is a bias towards researching high stakes assessment in secondary school, college and university. Disabled people experienced different support options such as having the option to wear earplugs in exams, being able to enter an examination room early, having the option to sit in a separate room, having more time in exams for people who are slower at writing or reading, having a scribe, or having a choice of assessment formats.^{[footnote 188]} For example, instead of timed essays, students demonstrated preference for presentations, multiple choice and extended matching questions in exams. Students suggested that social, emotional and mental health support in the run up to examinations is beneficial, particularly where such support affords anxiety coping strategies.

6.2 Range of roles of teaching assistants

Teaching assistants are heavily relied upon in schools as a form of formal support, particularly when children have an Education, Health and Care Plan.^{[footnote 189]} Research in this area demonstrates that teaching assistants perform a range of roles and tasks, including academic support, working one-to-one with students to talk through the content of a lesson or lecture, modelling and teaching everyday life skills, including social and communication skills.^{[footnote 190]} Some teaching assistants report that, in addition to academic support, part of their role involves behavioural support, such as stopping disruptive behaviour. 

While support staff played a central role in supporting disabled learners in schools by providing academic, behavioural and emotional support, students felt that staff also needed to know when to withdraw support and avoid getting in the way of peer interactions.^{[footnote 191]} If students were working well or sat with friends then the presence of a teaching assistant was not always needed or desired.^{[footnote 192][footnote 193]}

6.3 Familiarity and flexibility

The theme of familiarity and flexibility relates to 2  important aspects that shape disabled people’s experiences of education: firstly, the extent to which staff are aware of the support needs of disabled people,^{[footnote 194]} and secondly, how adaptable schools, colleges and universities can be.^{[footnote 195]} Staff awareness of students’ needs is important. But awareness in itself does not solve problems, and staff should be able to act on information to make positive changes for students.^{[footnote 196]} Familiarity and flexibility are critical to creating adaptive approaches to teaching and assessment, moving beyond stereotypes regarding what all disabled students require to tailored approaches aimed to make education accessible at an individual level.^{[footnote 197][footnote 198][footnote 199]} This is not to say that general rules of thumb are irrelevant, but that support options that suit some learners will not be suitable for all.^{[footnote 200]}

Support options to help with familiarity included tutors checking in with disabled people, such as by having designated time with staff to talk about academic support or mental health,^{[footnote 201]} and staff being open to ad hoc communication with students.^{[footnote 202][footnote 203]} Students felt better supported when staff listened to student concerns and took them seriously.^{[footnote 204][footnote 205]}

Compassionate staff who treated students as individuals rather than cases or stereotypes helped improve the motivation of students,^{[footnote 206]} which can lead to conversations such as monitoring and advising on self-care, and self-awareness about mental health symptoms,^{[footnote 207]} and the importance of maintaining good mental health.^{[footnote 208]} Good staff-student relationships are important in the contexts not just of educational attainment, but pupil wellbeing.^{[footnote 209][footnote 210]}

Building trust and rapport extends outside of the staff-student relationship. Students are appreciative of student support provision, such as within university student unions, when this support provides a sense of normality and safety.^{[footnote 211]} This provision is valued when disabled students feel they can be themselves^{[footnote 212]} without anyone questioning their needs or impairment.^{[footnote 213]}

Flexibility can include options for autistic people to move between spaces, such as from busy classrooms to quiet and calm rooms if people are feeling overwhelmed.^{[footnote 214]} Similarly, rooms can be transformed to offer different kinds of access during different times of the day, such as quiet hours during freshers’ fairs or careers events with limited student numbers, and the option to access events early before the majority of people arrive.^{[footnote 215]} Some nursing students benefited from the routine of hospital wards when on practical placement, which offer structure and clear purpose.^{[footnote 216]}

6.4 Online learning options

Some disabled students raised the importance of online learning for several reasons. Online learning gives them a level of control over their studies, through being able to study at their own pace as they manage their impairment needs.^{[footnote 217]} Online learning also provides a relief from the stigma associated with disability.^{[footnote 218]} Finally, it gives disabled students the opportunity to develop their technological literacy skills, which in turn helps independence.^{[footnote 219]}

6.5 Creating opportunities for belonging and self-worth through education

The research reveals how disabled students desire to feel a sense of belonging in school, college and university, and hope to feel positive about their educational experiences.^{[footnote 220]} A sense of belonging and positive wellbeing means that students feel that their education is worthwhile^{[footnote 221]} with engaging lesson content and supportive staff.^{[footnote 222]} Positive relationships with peers are also important. The research describes how classroom seating plans can help counteract students’ feelings of loneliness and isolation.^{[footnote 223]} Seating plans help children form and maintain good working (and playing) relationships with their peers, including influencing their abilities to learn with and from one another.^{[footnote 224]}

Educational outcomes and achievements reflected an important marker for self-esteem and self-worth.^{[footnote 225][footnote 226]} Neurodiverse students reported wanting to do well academically, and they were mindful of their educational achievements in light of challenges they may encounter, which in turn was important for their sense of self.^{[footnote 227][footnote 228]} One such example is how students sometimes felt motivated to advocate for their needs, as well as address lecturers’ perceived lack of understanding regarding impairment issues and the importance of reasonable adjustments.^{[footnote 229][footnote 230]} Other examples included: 

• feeling a duty to challenge negative assumptions regarding disability, such as those from teachers
• to prove their own personal self-judgements wrong
• to use their experience to educate others for positive change, such as staff training^{[footnote 231][footnote 232]}

6.6 Effective transition planning and creating opportunities for independence and growth

While fears of transitioning into more senior levels of education, or out of education altogether, evoked some anxiety and helplessness with  some autistic students reporting the potential opportunities for development and independence.^{[footnote 233][footnote 234]} For example, autistic students reported wanting to get away from their previous school lives, as this reflected an important milestone in their development and important in achieving their end goal aspirations.^{[footnote 235]} They anticipated that the transition process would be challenging, but wanted the capability to face these difficulties independently. For example, attending university was viewed as an opportunity for leaving behind their school issues and histories of bullying, as well as a chance to reinvent themselves as a university student.^{[footnote 236]}

For these reasons, students recognised the importance of individualised transition, in that because each disabled person experiences their educational transition milestones differently, the transition process itself should be individualised to their specific needs.^{[footnote 237][footnote 238]} Examples included ensuring that students are fully familiarised with the school before they transition, as well as the importance of visual aids to guide the transition process, such as photographs of the school.^{[footnote 239]}

6.7 Recruitment, retention and training of staff

Autistic people value staff who are knowledgeable about disability, inclusion and reasonable adjustments.^{[footnote 240]} ‘Staff’ here is used in the broadest possible sense to include teaching staff, teaching support staff, career service staff, mentors, and others. Staff knowledge is closely related to the quality of staff training, and this can lead to effective and practical changes to the learning environment which are positively experienced by people with visual impairments.^{[footnote 241]} For example, regarding how to best support disabled healthcare students when moving from a university to clinical practice, effective staff training which has buy-in from different stakeholders was deemed to be an effective enabler.^{[footnote 242]}

Several studies describe the importance of education providers recruiting and retaining disabled members of staff at all levels of institutional hierarchy.^{[footnote 243]} Disabled staff are seen as empathic and understanding of disabled students’ lived experiences and the barriers and solutions to improve educational attainment and satisfaction.^{[footnote 244]} The recruitment and retention of disabled staff can lead to heightened awareness of special educational needs and disability at the institutional level, and can be a driver for positive change through formal training of non-disabled staff and informal support.^{[footnote 245]}

6.8 Provision and co-ordination of services and institutional-level support

Effective support for disabled students includes a ‘port of call’.^{[footnote 246][footnote 247]} A port of call is somebody who can listen to student concerns, and help students navigate the range of services available to them, as well as help co-ordinate and communicate with different staff. Disabled students including Deaf women also appreciated services that seamlessly allowed for good communication and collaboration between different groups of stakeholders who had an interest in their support.^{[footnote 248]} An example of this was regarding transition planning, and how students with mental health conditions wanted their professionals to be in contact with each other so that their experience can be made more straightforward.

Services did not necessarily need to be provided by the educational institution, but by tailored external organisations.^{[footnote 249]} For example, DSA was noted by some students with vision impairments as being essential to allow their participation at university, and spoke of how they wanted their support in place prior to starting their course.^{[footnote 250]} Other research spoke of the importance of connecting different services, such as between educational services and the healthcare sector, to ensure that students did not experience barriers to entering or participation in their education.^{[footnote 251]}

A simplified support system which is easy to navigate, with initial consultation and needs assessment is important.^{[footnote 252]} Family satisfaction increases when there are accessible and simple referral processes, holistic forms of assessments rather than focusing exclusively or primarily on what students are unable to do.^{[footnote 253]} Effective action plans that lead to positive outcomes, transparent and regular monitoring, and review processes to ensure that the Education, Health and Care Plan and the support that relates to it is still relevant and applicable was also important.^{[footnote 254]}

Research also recognised the importance of involving young people and their families in Education, Health and Care Plan meetings and discussions, as well as joined-up working between professionals.^{[footnote 255][footnote 256]}

6.9 Ownership, control, choice and independence

Disabled students’ opportunity to shape education provision, make independent life choices,^{[footnote 257]} and participate in decision-making processes was linked to increased engagement.^{[footnote 258]} For example, researchers reported an increase in attendance when students were offered choice with regards to school topics and extracurricular activities. Students who were able to make choices felt that their school valued different forms of learning and knowledge.^{[footnote 259]}

Assessment was a big area of discussion in the research, with students’ suggesting that a choice in learning and assessment options, such as a choice for online learning,^{[footnote 260]} or between a written or oral exam, presentation, multiple choice questions, and coursework, would allow for students to more effectively demonstrate what they have learned, and this choice was also described as benefitting all students, not just disabled people.^{[footnote 261][footnote 262]} Autistic students  who were involved in making decisions about exam access arrangements experienced less anxiety and performed better.^{[footnote 263]} These access arrangements included being allowed into the exam room early, wearing earplugs, and sitting at the front, leading to better concentration.

Other arrangements included extra time to comprehend questions,^{[footnote 264]} as well as pre-exam support from staff who can help students understand the purpose or function of examination, provide strategies for coping with anxiety in exams, revision strategies, and exam question comprehension strategies.^{[footnote 265]}  Being involved in the design of access arrangements led to those arrangements more accurately matching the needs of the student. Students who can shape their education and experience success feel that they have less anxiety and are happier.^{[footnote 266]}

Enabling students to be independent is a relatively large sub-theme. Students appreciate the opportunity to develop skills around self-advocacy in education,^{[footnote 267]} as well as thinking skills or study skills.^{[footnote 268][footnote 269]} Disabled students who are increasingly independent are said to experience a positive sense of self, or an improved self-concept.^{[footnote 270]} Students involved in the reviewed studies described the benefits of attending workshops to help improve handwriting, time management skills, develop revision skills and learn about mind maps and speed reading. 

Students also suggested the importance of having wellbeing topics on the curriculum, to help people identify symptoms of mental health, understand what to do to improve mental health, and point them in the right direction to receive support.^{[footnote 271]} Students also benefit from technology, especially where training is provided.^{[footnote 272][footnote 273]}

6.10 Informal social support

The evidence found that being friends with confident students can help students with vision impairments feel more relaxed in their studies and placements.^{[footnote 274]} Friends can act as informal mentors by providing informal advice to disabled people about a topic being studied, or with regards to study skills.^{[footnote 275][footnote 276][footnote 277]} Some studies suggest that students who are knowledgeable about a friend’s impairments can help the friend navigate university life such as providing advice on where to go for support, and where to avoid, such as busy sensory spaces.^{[footnote 278][footnote 279]}

Some studies report the need for staff to act as mentors to allow disabled people to make friends and access the peer community.^{[footnote 280]} Students who have friends and a consistent social group feel better support overall, while students who lack friends have fewer opportunities to talk and be open, leading to a decline in mental health.^{[footnote 281]} Break times in schools provide an important opportunity for disabled people to engage with peers, though sometimes formal support is required to help disabled and non-disabled young people interact, play and make friends.^{[footnote 282][footnote 283]} Some support options make disabled people feel like they stand out from the crowd, but friends help overcome this sense of difference and lead to a feeling of acceptance.^{[footnote 284]} Speaking to other disabled people can be important as it allows a sense of community and a discussion of common lived experiences.^{[footnote 285]} Studies suggested that disability support groups could be helpful.^{[footnote 286]}

The importance of peers was universal. In studies involving children with profound and multiple learning difficulties (PMLD), mainstream peer interaction provided novel opportunities for children with PMLD to play, interact and learn or practice communication skills.^{[footnote 287][footnote 288]} Staff sometimes managed these interactions before students had the confidence or knowledge to communicate with children with PMLD independently.^{[footnote 289]} Supporting student knowledge was also seen to be an enabler with other disabled people. For example, how people with vision and hearing impairments feel supported when their peer groups know how to communicate with them in an accessible way.^{[footnote 290][footnote 291]}

7. Conclusion

This report highlights cross-cutting themes regarding disabled people’s lived experience of education. Despite ongoing international calls for inclusive education, disabled people in the UK still face barriers that stop them taking part in school, college and university equally with non-disabled people. 

Education staff have inadequate training in disability, inclusion and reasonable adjustments. This leads to staff having limited knowledge and skills, and students having inconsistent support and highly variable experience. Transitioning between education settings, such as further to higher education, can be ineffective if there is not enough planning and transition support. 

But disabled people have a significantly better experience when institutions are flexible and adaptable, when staff take the support needs of disabled people seriously, and when authentic choice of access arrangements is offered. But the research reviewed in this paper indicates that positive support is not universally experienced. Education providers must do much more to improve the educational experiences, and life chances, of disabled people.

7.1 Limitations

From the papers that we have reviewed, there is a distinct lack of understanding about the meaning and purpose of inclusive education. This leads to uncertainty about how far any of the approaches described can be defined as ‘inclusive’. What makes up an inclusive education is left largely untouched, particularly what it is supposed to achieve. 

There is a lack of research around teaching and curriculum design. There is also limited evidence to suggest that any strategies or schemes are beneficial or generalisable for particular groups of disabled people in education. Whether this is achievable or even desirable is open to debate. 

Regardless, there are some consistent themes discussed. Some of these themes may help educational institutions reflect on their practice. Staff can then take a leading role in identifying what changes could help students, and provide a better educational experience for disabled people, perhaps on a case-by-case basis. 

In addition, there are some limitations that come with a thematic review focused on lived experience research. These include small sample sizes and limited peer review. 

7.2 Gaps in research

The research describes a range of barriers experienced by disabled people in education. But there are clear gaps in the research publications that we have reviewed, particularly regarding:

• who was involved in the research (the participants)
• how the research was conducted (the methodology)
• the topics of research

There are significant gaps relating to research participants. For example, the majority of studies have focused on students with verbal communication skills. We reviewed no studies that included people with severe or profound and multiple learning disabilities. For this reason, we included our own research on the topic, but this only accounts for 2 small-scale studies. 

In addition, the majority of studies reviewed cover impairment-specific experiences or consider disabled people as a single or homogenous group. This approach fails to consider the unique experiences and barriers faced by disabled people with other protected characteristics. There was little research that directly attempted to address intersectionality. That is, studies did not examine how disabled people may experience other barriers because of their sex, gender, sexual orientation, race, or religion and belief. 

While protected characteristics may have been used to describe research participants, subsequent data analysis did not highlight this aspect and failed to consider specific lived experiences of how this interacted with disability. For example, there were very few studies that examined ethnic minority and disability status, or LGBTQIA+ and disability status. In relation to further and adult education, high levels of social deprivation faced by some students was acknowledged. But the research did not examine this aspect to any great depth. This meant these individuals were largely treated as a homogenous group of disabled people.

The majority of studies were conducted on disabled people, rather than with them. In other words, there is a lack of research led by disabled people on the topics discussed. The methodology is largely interview-based, with student voices not always taking centre stage, particularly younger children. There is a lack of ethnographic research and action research, as well as a lack of in-depth theorisation of the issues described. 

More research is required that:

• involves a broader sample
• includes people with profound and multiple learning difficulties
• uses methodologies developed within disability studies which are informed by inclusive and co-produced approaches to research

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