ABSTRACT
The concept of inclusion lies at the heart of UK social and educational policy and has done so for well over a decade. It is a concept that is notoriously difficult to define since, like our concept of autism, it means different things to different people in different contexts and is also constantly evolving over time (Parry et al. 2). However, for the purposes of this book, inclusion is taken to mean increasing access and participation for all by bringing an end to the various forms of segregation and exclusion that for many years have marginalised large sections of the population on the basis of race, gender, sexual orientation, ethnicity, religion and/or disability. Such a transformation implies structural and attitudinal, as well as practice changes within the workplace. These changes rely, in turn, on wider socio-political and cultural transformations based on the ideals of social justice, social equality and democratic participation (Griffiths 2).
