Why School Doesn’t Work for Every Child: How to Create a Culture of Inclusion and Belonging

Every child, no matter their starting point or background and no matter their additional and different needs, should have an equitable chance of success at school.

This first book in the Equity in Education series looks at how schools can foster a better sense of belonging and ensure they are truly inclusive of all learners, thus mitigating the effects of an increasingly unequal, fractured society. To ensure a child’s birth does not also become their life’s destiny, Matt Bromley shows how an inclusive school culture can be created through a process that is as simple as ABC:

• Attendance: raising the attendance and punctuality of disadvantaged learners
• Behaviours: helping students develop appropriate behaviours for learning so that they can conduct themselves positively and develop the skills needed to access an increasingly challenging curriculum
• Community: building a community around learners by putting family first and engaging with parents as partners in the process of educating their child

Offering actionable guidance and strategies that can be used to support school development plans, the book sets out the practical ways schools can create a collaborative culture in which all staff understand the importance of inclusion as well as the part they play in helping to achieve it. As such, it is essential reading for all teachers and school leaders who want to ensure that every child has an equitable chance of success at school and in later life.

Matt Bromley is an education journalist, author, and advisor with twenty-five years’ experience in teaching and leadership including as a secondary school headteacher and academy principal, further education college vice principal, and multi-academy trust director. Matt is a public speaker, trainer, initial teacher training lecturer, and school improvement advisor. He remains a practising teacher, currently working in secondary, FE and HE settings. Matt writes for various magazines, is the author of numerous best-selling books on education, and co-hosts an award-winning podcast.