Welcome to December's Lead Inclusion School update. In this month’s edition, you will find:

Updates

• Reporting 
• Comets in School
• Partner Survey

Dates for your diary

• Networking Calls
• Inclusion Live 2026

Spotlight Story

• Major League Baseball First Pitch at Watergate School

Opportunities

• Menstrual Education Considering SEND
• Play Boccia 

Updates 

Reporting 

A reminder that the deadline for this term's reporting is Friday 19 December. Please ensure the snap survey is fully complete and submitted by this deadline. We will also be pulling off the data from your live reporting spreadsheets on this date, so if you have been working on it offline, please ensure it has been sent to us by Friday 19 December.  

Just a reminder that we are also asking all Lead Inclusion Schools to please send us a case study by Tuesday 31 March 2026. This can be a whole school story or about a young person whose life has been positively impacted by Inclusion 2028. The individual case study template can be found here and the school case template can be found here. Click for young person consent form and individual journey consent form (18+).

These documents can also be found in the Teams channel. 

If anyone is struggling to access or with completing their reporting, please reach out to the SEND inbox or your Development Coach for support.  

Comets in Schools  

A reminder to use this form to express interest on behalf of schools in your area to take part in the Comets in Schools programme. Please submit responses as soon as possible but no later than Friday 19 December. There are two spaces on the form, however if you would like to submit expressions of interest for more than two schools, please write them on the same line or submit the form multiple times if you run out of space.  

Your Development Coach has the expression of interest list if you want to check whether you’ve achieved the outcome.  

Partner Survey 

This is a polite reminder for you to share the partner survey with any practitioners you're supporting as part of the Inclusion 2028 programme. We've only had 100 registrations across the entire network since 1 September 2025. The partner survey allows us to measure the success of the programme through the voices of the partners impacted - through completing the link below or scanning the QR code to register. This allows ASK Research to send a short survey for practitioners to complete about their experience working with yourselves as a network which we can share back to you and the Department for Education. This helps the Youth Sport Trust to demonstrate the impact of Inclusion 2028 and therefore evidence the need for the funding. 

Please ensure that this survey is sent to all practitioners/schools you are working with - this could be at the end of a training session, during a meeting or even in your newsletter!  

Dates for your diary

Networking Calls 

Join us for one of our Networking calls to share best practice, meet other Lead Inclusion Schools and ask any questions you may have.  

• Lead Inclusion School Networking call Tuesday 16 December 12:00pm. Sign up here
• Lead Inclusion School Networking call Thursday 18 December 3:30pm. Sign up here
• Lead Inclusion School Networking call. Thursday 22 January 12:00pm. (Please note this has moved from Tuesday 20 January) Sign up here
• Lead Inclusion School Networking call Thursday 22 January 3:30pm. Sign up here.

Inclusion Live: Monday 26 - Friday 30 January 2026  

This week of free virtual webinars aims to upskill practitioners in how to make PE, school sport and physical activity more inclusive for children and young people with SEND. It has been great to see practitioners booking onto Inclusion Live over the last couple of weeks, so please continue to encourage people to book on, particularly school-based staff and School Games Organisers.  

Further details about each session along with the booking links can be found here.

To support you in promoting these webinars to your networks, we have created a toolkit inclusive of email templates, social media posts and graphics that can be used to spread the message. Please do make use of this toolkit and use hashtag #InclusionLive2026 in any social media posts you do. The toolkit page can be found here.

Spotlight Story 

Major League Baseball (MLB) First Pitch at Watergate School: Inspiring Inclusion Through Baseball 

Watergate School in Lewisham, a special school for pupils aged 4–11 with severe learning difficulties and complex needs, joined the MLB First Pitch programme in September 2024. Delivered by MLB, BaseballSoftballUK, and facilitated by the Youth Sport Trust, the programme introduces baseball in an inclusive, engaging way. 

Why It Matters: 
The PE lead teacher wanted to show that mainstream sports can be adapted for all children. With simplified resources and creative adjustments - such as bell balls for visually impaired pupils and large plastic bats - the school enabled 28 pupils with diverse physical and cognitive disabilities to participate fully. 

Impact Highlights: 

• Skill Development: Children learned baseball-specific skills at their own level, from pitching fastballs to pushing a bat off their lap.
• Functional Mobility: Activities improved walking frame control, grip strength, and wheelchair self-propelling skills.
• Social Connection: Mixed-year sessions fostered friendships and teamwork, creating a sense of belonging.
• Communication Growth: Baseball vocabulary was added to assistive tech for nonverbal pupils, boosting engagement. 

Watergate plans to expand baseball activities, involve parents, and collaborate with local clubs and BaseballSoftballUK for holiday programmes. The school strongly recommends MLB First Pitch to other special schools, citing its transformative impact. 

“Anything can be adapted for these children, and it’s so exciting for them to be part of something everyone else is a part of.” – PE Lead Teacher 

The full report can be found here. For more information or to join the waiting list for the programme, please email [email protected].   

Opportunities

Menstrual Education Considering SEND  

49% of girls said they are inactive at school when they have their period, this was consistent in pupils with SEND. Similarly, the concerns of being in pain, leaking or low mood were consistent when data was extracted for SEND pupils. However, a higher percentage (10%) of SEND pupils reported never taking part in PE when they have their period. Compared to total National data, there was a greater request in SEND to access menstrual products in PE and receive support to help cope in PE with how they are feeling at this time along with more support to understand about periods (YST, 2024).  

To help support pupils with SEND, we would like to ask teachers four questions to understand how and what resources are required to increase education and support relating to the menstrual cycle and staying active during periods.  

You can provide your feedback via this Snap survey link. 

Play Boccia  

Play Boccia packages are now available. Boccia is a fun, exciting and inclusive sport which can be played by all. Their aim is to provide support to teachers, support staff, or pupils to deliver Play Boccia activities.  

There are a number of Play Boccia packages available to provide you with everything you need to present the sport of boccia within your school or college. 

• Essentials Package: An entry level package to support with the delivery of boccia
• Competition Package: A package designed for those interested delivering boccia sessions as well as a guide on hosting a competition or festival (includes referee equipment)   
• Training Package: Designed for those who want to assist players in advancing their boccia skills and ability. Includes training equipment, tips, a guide to training boccia and a Boccia England Leaders Award course. 

All packs include boccia ball sets, activity cards and a guide for teachers for those delivering the sport. Packages can be tailored to suit your needs.  

More information can be found here or by emailing [email protected],uk.