ABSTRACT
Whatever models of inclusive practice are debated by education professionals, there still remains a significant group of children and young people who never gain access to a mainstream school or classroom, despite the preference for mainstream expressed by their parents. These children may become the subject of appeals to the Special Educational Needs Tribunal, or even to the High Court. Often their cases become causes célèbres locally. Some parents are ultimately successful in their appeals and eventually their children become mainstream pupils, though they have missed significant amounts of education. Other would-be mainstream pupils remain permanently out of school.
