ABSTRACT
A child with special educational needs (SEN) is one who has a learning difficulty which requires special educational provision. The first distinction to be borne in mind is contained within the Mary Warnock Report, which was the culmination of an enquiry into the education of handicapped children and young people. The report suggested that 'up to one in five children at some time during their school career will require some form of special education'. This observation is the source of the widely quoted assertion that '20 per cent of children have SEN'. When the 1981 Education Act was placed on the Statute Book, it signalled a significant break with the established tradition of special education in the United Kingdom. The Act refers to children with special educational needs. This term was intended to encompass both those with more severe disabilities, who were being taught in special schools, and those who were receiving 'remedial' education in ordinary schools.
