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Guaranteeing the right to education for children with
illnesses or disabilities

Resolution 1761 (2010)1

1.       The
Parliamentary Assembly reaffirms that the right to education
is universal and should include all children and youth with
disabilities. This right is enforced in a number of
conventions, as well as in several major, internationally
approved declarations, such as the World Declaration for
Education for All (1990), the UNESCO Salamanca Statement and
Framework for Action (1994), the Dakar Framework for Action
(2000) and the United Nations Convention on the Rights of
Persons with Disabilities (2006). This right is also enforced
in the relevant instruments of the Council of Europe, such as
the European Convention on Human Rights (ETS No. 5), the
revised European Social Charter (ETS No. 163), and the Council
of Europe Disability Action Plan 2006-2015.

2.        Each
document clearly states that all children and adults with
disabilities (and their families):

2.1.
have the same right to high quality and appropriate
education as everyone else in order to maximise their
potential and to make their contribution to an inclusive
society;

2.2.
have the right to choose and receive education in an
inclusive environment;

2.3.
have the right to specific resources and expertise to meet
their educational, therapeutic and citizenship needs;

2.4.
have the right to services which at all times act in their
best interest.

3.        The
Assembly is convinced that inclusive education guarantees the
right to education for all children regardless of their
physical, intellectual, emotional, cultural or other
conditions. Moreover, a diverse population of children and
young people being educated in the same schools is bound to
create an increased degree of tolerance and will contribute to
a growing acceptance of ‘differences’ in society. Inclusive
education is the responsibility of all and must be seen as an
important step towards the development of an inclusive society
for all. It will only be achieved by partnerships, networking
and joint learning by all stakeholders.

4.        The
Assembly therefore takes the view that in future, mainstream
services, including day care centres, pre-school set-ups,
schools, places of worship and leisure services should be
required to accept children with disabilities and to provide
the necessary support to facilitate their inclusion and their
participation.

5.
Wherever possible, children with disabilities should be
educated − in all phases of their schooling − within the
schools attended by other children and they should receive the
support required to facilitate their adaptation to regular
education or vocational training within the mainstream
systems. Where special schools or units are deemed necessary
or appropriate, these special schools or units should be
linked to regular schools and should be operated as resource
centres for their local communities.

6.        The
movement towards inclusive education should encompass
policy-makers, teachers, children, family members, communities
and society in general. Family members/guardians and teachers
in particular should take active roles in the lives of
children with disabilities both in and out of school.

7.        To
make inclusive education work, mainstream professionals in
education, health and social care services should receive
additional training and assistance from local centres of
excellence to equip them to work with children with
disabilities, and specifically to support their work with the
individual needs of children with disabilities.

8.        These
services should incorporate a range of personalised support
measures to assist children with disabilities so that they can
aim for the same kind of life and aspirations as their peer
group. They are entitled to growing independence, autonomy,
age-appropriate possessions, and assistive technology,
especially with regard to mobility and communication, in
accordance with their specific needs.

9.        Aware
of the fact that inclusive education is about improving
learning environments and providing opportunities for all
children, and bearing in mind that all children are unique and
should have a chance to become successful in their learning
experiences, the Assembly therefore calls on member states
to:

9.1.
accept that the right to education is universal and step up
action in the field of education of children with
disabilities so as to ensure that disability-related
programmes are sufficiently resourced and that children with
physical and/or mental disabilities are able to enjoy full
citizenship on an equal basis with others whilst being
individually accompanied according to their specific
needs;

9.2.
develop a policy and legal framework to promote the
development of inclusive education, emphasising the
importance of a strong cross-sectoral, multidisciplinary
co-operation which encompasses all key stakeholders
including those belonging to the child’s direct
environment;

9.3.
give preference to inclusive practices in educational policy
and establish or re-organise educational systems and
infrastructures accordingly. In doing so, member states
should bear in mind that transition to inclusive education
requires not just a technical or organisational change based
on a new approach to educational training, methodologies,
programmes or evaluation systems, but also a turn towards a
new philosophical direction including changes in public
awareness, attitudes and values;

9.4.
strive to eliminate existing physical, as well as
attitudinal barriers, and avoid the creation of new
obstacles that might exist within the context of school
settings;

9.5.
grant equal access to education at every level to children
with disabilities, whatever the nature and severity of their
disabilities, giving particular attention to the educational
needs of children living in specialised institutions,
especially those in hospital settings;

9.6.
develop an action plan aimed at reforming the existing
educational system, including funding for transition costs
and devise standards, methodologies and financing mechanisms
for inclusive education;

9.7.
ensure that all syllabuses and teaching materials within the
general education system are accessible to children with
disabilities;

9.8.
reform the teacher training system in order to enable future
teachers and school staff to meet the requirements of an
inclusive school system, and create research-based
opportunities and mobilise resources so as to implement
inclusive education practices;

9.9.
help existing special schools to make the transition towards
resource centres and to enable their staff achieve the new
task of supporting inclusive schools in realising special
needs education programmes;

9.10.
promote an exchange of good practices and effective
strategies in inclusive education at a European level, as
revealed in inclusive education pilot schools or classrooms
which would include clinical interventions such as music
therapy;

9.11.
collect and update statistical information on children with
disabilities including gender, age, degree of disability
(for those in mainstream school settings as well as for
those out of their realm);

9.12.
take initiatives to transform special schools as well as
residential institutions in which children with disabilities
are segregated, into inclusive settings or settings for
resource centres where all individuals receive information
about disabilities;

9.13.
make early identification and intervention services widely
available for children with disabilities and ensure that
parents, guardians, other stakeholders as well as the
children themselves are better informed about the
availability and importance of these services;

9.14.
promote positive attitudes towards inclusion at all levels
of education and take action – in collaboration with NGOs
and universities – so as to change perceptions as well as
expectations as regards the right to education for children
with disabilities and raise public awareness of this problem
in the different segments of society.

10.       The
Assembly welcomes the work done by the Council of Europe
Commissioner for Human Rights on the rights of people with
illnesses or disabilities and invites him to give particular
attention to how these rights should be secured in practice,
especially with regard to children within the school
environment.

1 Assembly debate on 7 October
2010 (35th Sitting) (see Doc.
12262, report of the Social, Health and Family Affairs
Committee, rapporteur: Mr Ayva). Text adopted by the
Assembly on 7 October 2010 (35th Sitting).

See also
Recommendation 1938 (2010).

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