Is there a second wave of inclusive research? New futures or a return to old ground?

This presentation will explore the idea that there has been a shift in the way in which inclusive research with people with the label of learning difficulties is conducted. Drawing on the history of inclusive research, I will explore how changes in policy over time, often underpinned by inclusive research, and austerity measures introduced since the 2010 coalition government in the UK, have fundamentally changed the landscape of inclusive research.

I suggest that many of these historical policy changes have been positive signs of progress for people labelled with learning difficulties. However, I problematize the way in which these emancipatory notions of independence and autonomy in policy have been hijacked in the name of neoliberal economic policies. This process is designed to both shrink the publically funded welfare state and shift remaining resources into the private sector. This, I argue, has made people, and especially disabled people, vulnerable to poverty, ill health and higher levels of mortality as support is withdrawn. For those still seen as ‘deserving’ of support, the process facilitates the hyper-monetising of (re-)institutionalisation and the attendant horrors of neglect and abuse.

I will conclude by returning to the potential for Inclusive Research to uncover disempowering practices and illuminate pathways of resistance and emancipatory approaches that will promote human flourishing