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Ultimately, cultural inclusion is an essential piece of the jigsaw for ensuring that all children and young people have
the opportunity to reach their full potential. Paul has brought the reality of this to life through this book. It’s now
time for all of us to play our part in building a culturally rich and more inclusive world.
Professor Adam Boddison, Visiting Professor of Education,
University of Wolverhampton
Cultural Inclusion for Young People with SEND
This practical book ofers a multifaceted view of cultural inclusion from the perspective of special educational needs
and disabilities (SEND).
It provides a road map for teachers to ensure increased participation in arts and culture for children and young
people with SEND, defning a series of characteristics for good practice. Chapters explore spaces as diverse as galler-
ies, museums, theatres, and performance venues and include a variety of case studies, highlighting the experiences
of young people and the organisations who partner with schools.
Cultural Inclusion for Young People with SEND ofers a compelling call to action and is an essential resource for those
who have the power to improve and support the development of future provision for children with SEND.
Paul Morrow is Lead Practitioner of the Creative Arts at Westminster Special Schools and a practising artist. Paul
founded the West London Inclusive Arts Festival, a festival funded by the John Lyon’s Charity involving six special
needs schools and six cultural partners. He is also the co-author of the Cultural Inclusion Manifesto.
nasen is a professional membership association that supports all those who work with or care for children and
young people with special and additional educational needs. Members include SENCOs, school leaders, governors/
trustees, teachers, teaching assistants, support workers, other educationalists, students and families.
nasen supports its members through policy documents, peer-reviewed academic journals, its membership maga-
zine nasen Connect, publications, professional development courses, regional networks and newsletters. Its website
contains more current information such as responses to government consultations.
nasen’s published documents are held in very high regard both in the UK and internationally.
For a full list of titles see: https://www.routledge.com/nasen-spotlight/book-series/FULNASEN
Other titles published in association with the National Association for Special Educational Needs (nasen):
Cultural Inclusion for Young People with SEND: Practical Strategies for Meaningful Inclusion in
Arts and Culture
Paul Morrow
2023/pb: 978-0-367-64123-8
Providing Relationships and Sex Education for Special Learners
Paul Bray
2021/pb: 978-1-138-48747-5
Inclusion: A Principled Guide for School Leaders
Nicola Crossley and Des Hewitt
2021/pb: 978-0-367-34528-0
Leading on Inclusion: The Role of the SENCO
Mhairi Beaton, Geraldene Codina and Julie Wharton
2021/pb: 978-0-367-42050-5
The Governance Handbook for SEND and Inclusion: Schools that Work for All Learners
Adam Boddison
2020/pb: 978-0-367-37003-9
TheSchool Handbook for Dual and Multiple Exceptionality
Denise Yates and Adam Boddison
2020/pb: 978-0-367-36958-3
Creating Multi-sensory Environments: Practical Ideas for Teaching and Learning, Revised Edition
Christopher Davies
2020/pb: 978-0-415-57330-6
Dyslexia and Inclusion: Classroom Approaches for Assessment, Teaching and Learning
Gavin Reid
2019/pb: 978-1-138-48749-9
Using an Inclusive Approach to Reduce School Exclusion: A Practitioner’s Handbook
Tristan Middleton and Lynda Kay
2019/pb: 978-1-138-31691-1
Cultural Inclusion for Young
People with SEND
Practical Strategies for Meaningful Inclusion in
Arts and Culture
Paul Morrow
Designed cover image: Image courtesy of College Park School
First published 2023
by Routledge
4 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN
and by Routledge
605 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10158
Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business
© 2023 Paul Morrow
The right of Paul Morrow to be identifed as author of this work has been asserted in accordance with sections 77 and 78 of
the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
All rights reserved. The purchase of this copyright material confers the right on the purchasing institution to photocopy or
download pages which bear the companion website icon or a copyright line at the bottom of the page. No other parts of
this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now
known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system,
without permission in writing from the publishers.
Trademark notice: Product or corporate names may be trademarks or registered trademarks, and are used only for
identifcation and explanation without intent to infringe.
British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Morrow, Paul, author.
Title: Cultural inclusion for young people with SEND : practical strategies for meaningful inclusion in arts and culture /
Paul Morrow.
Description: Abingdon, Oxon ; New York, NY : Routledge, 2023. | Series: Nasen spotlight ; Volume 44 | Includes index.
Identifers: LCCN 2022030811 (print) | LCCN 2022030812 (ebook) | ISBN 9780367641252 (hardback) |
ISBN 9780367641238 (paperback) | ISBN 9781003122258 (ebook)
Subjects: LCSH: Inclusive education. | People with disabilities and the arts. | Learning disabled children—Education. |
Students with disabilities—Education. | Multicultural education.
Classifcation: LCC LC1200 .M846 2023 (print) | LCC LC1200 (ebook) | DDC 371.9/046—dc23/eng/20220713
LC record available at https://lccn.loc. gov/2022030811
LC ebook record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2022030812
ISBN: 978-0-367-64125-2 (hbk)
ISBN: 978-0-367-64123-8 (pbk)
ISBN: 978-1-003-12225-8 (ebk)
DOI: 10.4324/9781003122258
Typeset in Bembo
by Apex CoVantage, LLC
Access the companion website: www.routledge.com/9780367641238
Contents
Acknowledgements viii
Foreword ix
1 Introduction 1
2 What does inclusion look like? 7
3 Shaping a culturally inclusive curriculum 13
4 Policy and strategy – implications for cultural inclusion – know your rights! 24
5 Cultural inclusion – a family’s perspective 33
6 Producers of art and culture: disabled-focused and disabled-led organisations 47
7 Cultural inclusion – a historical perspective 60
8 Anti-ableist pedagogy in arts and culture 67
9 Contemporary art practice and inclusive art practice 82
10 Cultural inclusion – developing meaningful partnerships between schools and cultural
organisations 101
11 Heritage settings and inclusion; school’s partnerships 116
12 Relaxed performances and venues 130
13 Where next in art, culture, and inclusion? 137
Glossary 141
Index 143
Acknowledgements
I would like to thank Professor Adam Boddison for asking me to write the book. I would also like to thank Anita
Kerwin-Nye for her mentorship and her ongoing support for this work. I would also like to thank Rachael Christ-
ophides for her support with the structure and for being a constant sounding board.
I would also like to thank Andrew Miller and Dr Claire Penketh of Liverpool Hope University for informing my
thinking.
I would like to thank the parents who contributed to the book, Stephen Unwin, April Li, Claire Madge, and
Lisha Rooney.
I would also like to thank Open City and Sarah Philips and the musician Luke Crookes and the artist Marc
Woodhead.
I would like to thank Sarah Archdeacon and DJ of Corali Dance Company, Sheryll Catto and Charlotte Hol-
linshead of ActionSpace, Jodi-Alissa Bickerton of Graeae Theatre Company, Jennifer Gilbert of the Jennifer Lauren
Gallery, and Douglas Noble and Carien Meijer of Drake Music.
I would also like to thank Ruth Boley and Dwayne Rose of the Maritime Museum, and the author Karin Lit-
tlewood and Amy Chang and Dorothée Perin of the Wallace Collection.
I would like to thank Amy Powell and Beth Warnock of the English National Opera, Jess Thom of Touretteshero,
and Aymeline Bel and Elise Robinson of Queensmill School.
And lastly all my colleagues at my home school, Westminster Special Schools, especially Tatjana Zeljic and Claire
Shepherd for their constant support and interest in this work.
Foreword
When I frst met Paul, his passion for inclusion and the arts was abundantly obvious. With a foot in both worlds, he
had unique insights into how inclusion could support culture and how culture could support inclusion. The argu-
ment for cultural inclusion was compelling from the outset and the benefts were clear, but there was a problem.
An increasingly complex cultural and educational landscape was preventing this important work from coming to
fruition. Those engaged with cultural inclusion were reaping the rewards, but the wider reach and potential impact
was yet to be realised. This book is one of the vehicles that can help cultural inclusion reach the audience it deserves.
Reading Paul’s book, I am struck by how efective he has been in taking a complicated set of ideas and com-
municating them so clearly to multiple audiences. For example, the book explicitly makes the case for inclusion in
cultural settings as well as for culturally inclusive curricula in schools. Schools and cultural settings may not always
have the same priorities, but complementarity can be built around cultural inclusion. Paul also interweaves research,
policy and practice in a way that is designed to build capacity and momentum for cultural inclusion. I have no doubt
that the practical advice and templates will be a valuable resource for those seeking to implement cultural inclusion.
Cultural inclusion is about ensuring that everybody has access to heritage, culture and the arts. Children and
young people with SEND (special educational needs and/or disabilities) are already too often marginalised in soci-
ety. This amplifes the importance of cultural inclusion for children and young people with SEND; the absence of
cultural inclusion exacerbates division, but its presence is a catalyst for inclusion more generally.
Similarly, the diversity of the arts world has a particular synergy with the diversity and creativity of children who
think diferently and see the world diferently. Therefore, cultural inclusion is about more than making sure that
children and young people with SEND do not miss out on having arts, culture and heritage in their lives. It is also
about ensuring that we as a society do not miss out on their talent and their creativity. Paul captures the essence of
this principle throughout the book.
Ultimately, cultural inclusion is an essential piece of the jigsaw for ensuring that all children and young people
have the opportunity to reach their full potential. Paul has brought the reality of this to life through this book. It’s
now time for all of us to play our part in building a culturally rich and more inclusive world.
Professor Adam Boddison
Visiting Professor of Education, University of Wolverhampton
