I am delighted to introduce the first conference edition of JIPFHE and my very sincere thanks go to Mike Wray for pulling it together. Please do not underestimate the work involved in such an undertaking.

NADP aims to produce two editions of the journal each year, one of which will focus on the conference. Next year we will be holding our first international conference, from 20th-24th July 2015 in Manchester, so we are looking forward to excellent contributions from all over the world. Mike’s guest editorial provides some background on the set of high quality peer reviewed articles included in this conference edition and I am sure readers will agree that they make essential reading for anyone committed to disability equality in post school education. A huge thank you goes to those who have contributed articles to this iteration of JIPFHE.

The non-conference edition will not usually be themed and we will accept contributions at any time and publish when we feel that we have a worthwhile set of articles which have all been successfully peer reviewed as outlined in the editorial guidelines. The editorial board feels that this approach makes more sense than tying ourselves to a specific publication date. Our aim is, of course, to produce publications which are useful to our readership and of high quality.

Please note the amendments we have made to the editorial guidelines and method for submitting articles. There have also been changes to the editorial board and JIPFHE now has four editors and a list of reviewers. The editors are Dr John Conway, Dr Nicola Martin, Deb Viney and Mike Wray and we will be sharing the responsibility between us from now on and moving away from the guest editor model. The journal is now available electronically as well as in print form.

Happy reading, and please get in touch if you feel that you may have something to contribute to JIPFHE and would like to discuss your ideas with one of the editors.

Thank you again to everyone involved in this important venture.

Dr Nicola Martin (Editor)
martinn4@lsbu.ac.uk

Guest editorial

It gives me great pleasure to present the latest edition of the Journal of Inclusive Practice in Further and Higher Education. This edition reports on the proceedings from the annual conference of the National Association of Disability Practitioners which is held in the UK every summer and draws together staff from across the tertiary level of the education sector. Whilst the audience is mainly made up of staff from higher and further education, increasingly practitioners from a range of organisations are attending the conference. This leads to a diversity of opinions, debate, sharing of good practice and interesting conversations during the more social aspects of the conference! However, at the heart of the work of all these professionals, is their aim to ensure that the educational offer within the sector is as inclusive as possible for disabled students. It is with this in mind that we also ensure that students are represented at the conference both as attendees and as co-collaborators on workshops and presentations. Our conference is enriched by their involvement.

This broad range of interests is hopefully reflected in the articles which are presented in this edition of the journal. Thanks must go to everyone who submitted an article, not only for preparing and presenting at conference but for submitting their pieces to critical review: and to the reviewers and people behind the scenes who spend a great deal of time and effort organising the conference and pulling together this journal. We are moving forward as a profession in terms of providing critical reflection on our practices and making great strides towards engaging in the more academic end of the spectrum of HE activity. It has always been my belief that staff from within central support services have a vital role to play within the academy and that we should ensure that we are taken seriously as part of the community of practice (Lave and Wenger, 1991).

Indicative of this move towards academia within our work are the articles by Draffan et al., Wilkinson et al., Mason et al. Martyn, and Kirkby. Draffan et al. and Wilkinson et al. present findings from a cross sector analysis of survey responses from disabled students of their engagement with support packages offered through the Disabled Students’ Allowances. In times of financial constraint it is vital that we ensure robust evaluation of provision in this way to provide the evidence base for continuation of funding should it be challenged by policy makers. I am also encouraged to see Mason et al’s and Kathy Martyn’s articles from within the medical professions – partly because it is great to see professional courses continuing to respond to removal of barriers for disabled students and to see that academic colleagues are inputting into the NADP national conference and journal. Kirkby’s article suggests that HE providers consider their model of support and move towards more embedded solutions. Again, it is great to see experts from within the field willing to engage with our activities.

As we move inexorably towards a market within education the voice of the client/customer/learner is held to the fore but for disability practitioners this is a welcome move, since we espouse the notions of ‘nothing about us without us’. Carswell and Price offer articles which embrace this approach. Amy Price delivered an inspirational speech at conference and she discusses her personal experiences here and Caroline Carswell provides a perspective from a social enterprise for d/Deaf children and their families.

Last but not least, we present articles which reflect upon the practice of disability professionals. The ECU discuss the work they have been doing with many HEIs in the sector and provide us with a sector overview which few are able to offer. However, we are equally delighted that individual practitioners have submitted articles which explore the ‘street level’ (Lipsky, 1980) end of our work. Sharon Sturgess discusses the ins and outs of providing graduate intern positions within disability services and Phillippa Goldsmith presents a perspective from a private university. Hopefully, anyone reading these pieces who are engaged in the process of accreditation to NADP, should find them not only inspiring but illustrative of writing which incorporates reflection on practice.

Mike Wray (Guest Editor)
m.wray@yorksj.ac.uk

References
Lave, J., and Wenger, E. (1991) Situated learning: legitimate peripheral participation. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Lipsky, M. (1980) Street-level bureaucracy: dilemmas of the individual in public services. New York: Russell Sage Foundation.

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