Deborah Robinson is a Professor of SEND and inclusion in the Institute of Education at the University of Derby. Deborah began her career working in an Inner-London primary school and her first class included children with disabilities. This was because the Local Authority (the Inner London Education Authority or ILEA) implemented a progressive policy of inclusion. Deborah became very interested in how mainstream classes could become more inclusive for pupils with SEND and she worked as a SEND Co-ordinator and Deputy Head and her leadership work focussed on inclusion. She has worked as a teacher educator for SEND and inclusion for many years and her specialist research has explored inclusive teacher development in the context of a school/university partnership. Her most recent research has investigated school leadership for inclusion and SEND in collaboration with 62 schools in the City of Derby. She also directed an in-depth evaluation of Ireland’s Access and Inclusion Model for the DCEDIY. Research on policies for SEND have also included an evaluation of Education Health and Care Plans for the DfE and Statutory Assessment for pupils with Severe and Profound Learning Difficulties. Her most recent publications include a Special Issue of the British Journal of Learning Difficulties, focussed on how education might be a catalyst for social inclusion.