Schools of thought: Kevin Lawson-McNamara wants a new Quaker approach to education

‘Our witness belongs where the need is greatest.’

by Kevin Lawson-McNamara 30th October 2026

An Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP) is a legal document that sets out the special educational needs of a child or young person, the support they must receive, and the outcomes that support is intended to achieve. But long before an EHCP is finalised, issues start in the everyday sounds of schools. Whether it is the low hum of lighting, noisy corridors, lesson bells, or a behaviour system that punishes neurodivergence as defiance, many young people feel unseen and misunderstood. For many across Britain, mainstream schools seem more focused on demanding compliance from exhausted students than on providing a space to truly thrive.