The title of Ofsted’s latest report, Twelve Outstanding Special Schools: Excelling through Inclusion (20 November) describes practice in schools and units for disabled pupils and those described as having learning or behavioural difficulties. It is a further indicator of how far the use of the term “inclusion” has slipped towards meaning the opposite of what one would naturally take it to mean, and indeed of what it did mean when first used in an education context 20 years ago. Today we not only come across staff-room “inclusion” noticeboards in mainstream that list pupils who have been withdrawn from school, we hear government pronouncements describe an inclusive system as being one that “includes” both mainstream and separate special schools. Ofsted’s entitling of the above report as “Excelling through inclusion”, is a further addition to this Orwellian genre. Almost everything the report calls “excellent” in these schools occurs within a setting in which children are excluded from daily contact and a sense of belonging with their peers.

No matter how committed, knowledgeable or experienced staff in a special school might be, the fact remains that children are growing up away from their brothers and sisters, friends and potential friends. CSIE’s view is that everyone belongs in their local community and, therefore, inclusion in the local neighbourhood school alongside friends, brothers and sisters is a basic human right of every young person. To deny this is an injustice that would not be tolerated for any other groups.

Of course neither CSIE nor anyone else owns the word “inclusion”. But when its meaning is palpably reversed, as in this report, awareness of children’s human rights is significantly diluted. CSIE wants every child’s human right to belong in their local community to be fully understood and upheld. Do we have to start using new words to make this message clear?