ABSTRACT
This chapter focuses on special needs in the early years, but begins by examining the broader context of early years provision of care and education, on the premise that 'special needs' cannot be appraised without reference to the wider backcloth of which it is a part. Successive governments the century have never been ideologically committed to a national policy on childcare and early years education, as can be seen from the way in which such provision has evolved locally. Accounts of the evolution of voluntary and statutory child health services by D. Dwork and of education for handicapped children given in the Warnock Report reveal a mix of ideologies leading to their creation. A number of accounts have already appeared describing the extensive number of initiatives in special educational needs, denoting teamwork if not partnership between parents and professionals. Children's rights, as enshrined in the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child provide the overarching principle.
