Inclusion Strategy
Inclusive Mainstream Fund (IMF)
The IMF is new, ring-fenced funding for inclusion, announced alongside the Every Child Achieving and Thriving white paper. The government has committed £1.6 billion over three years from 2026/27. The funding is given to mainstream state-funded schools for pupils aged 5 to 16, including reception, and covers maintained schools, academies and free schools. The money is not a personal budget for individual children; instead, it is meant to strengthen universal and targeted whole-school support (working alongside core funding and notional SEN budgets).
Schools can view official guidance and policy documentation on the GOV.UK Inclusive Mainstream Fund Page, or look up school funding estimates using tools like the TSO Education Inclusive Mainstream Fund Calculator. The DfE has published Best Practice guidance on how schools can spend the IMF.
Inclusion Strategy
As a condition of receiving the fund, schools must publish an inclusion strategy. Under the 2026-27 conditions of the grant, a strategy must:
- Be published by 31 December 2026
- Set out the activities schools are investing in to alleviate barriers to learning and participation
- Include the budgeted costs of those activities
- Show how spending aligns with the DfE's seven principles of inclusion
- Be updated and republished every year
Strategies must include a Statement of Intent, written in an accessible style to allow pupils and parents to understand the school's overarching vision and aims.
DSPL7 HfL Inclusion by Design Workshop
See below for links to the resources used at the recent HfL inclusion strategy workshop.