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<p>Our ambition for children with special educational needs (SEN) and disabilities
is exactly the same as it is for all children – we want them to be able to do their
best in school and reach their potential, including in free schools.</p><p>As part
of our commitments under the United Nations Convention of the Rights of Persons with
Disabilities, we are committed to inclusive education of disabled children and the
progressive removal of barriers to learning and participation in mainstream education.
The Children and Families Act 2014 secures the general presumption in law of mainstream
education in relation to decisions about where children with SEN should be educated;
and the Equality Act 2010 provides protection from disability discrimination. The
SEN system rightly places considerable weight on the views of parents as to where
a child with complex needs should be educated. While many parents of disabled children
choose mainstream education, others will want a specialist setting. Some children
have complex SEN that mean that the best educational experience for them is in a school
that specialises in meeting those needs. For them, a special school is a positive
choice.</p><p>We have opened new special schools through the free schools programme:
as of 1 January 2019, there are 34 open special free schools, and a further 55 special
free schools have been approved to open in the future.</p>
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