CHILDREN with special educational needs (SEN) should have more access to mainstream schools, delegates at an international conference held in Worcester have heard.

The director of education at Worcestershire County Council said a national strategy should be introduced to enable youngsters to mix with their peers in a mainstream environment.

Julien Kramer told delegates, from Sweden, Holland, Austria and Worcestershire, that the Government should include other issues on its agenda.

"The Government has introduced a literacy and numeracy strategy," he told the conference at University College Worcester over the weekend.

"They aren't as clear and understanding about SEN as they are about literacy and numeracy.

"An inclusion strategy is important, but why is it not being debated?"

The LEA is keen to extend the inclusion of pupils with SEN into mainstream schools, but delegates heard it would not be of detriment to special schools.

"We see the role of special schools extended to support mainstream schools in a special working relationship," said Steve Seymour, Worcestershire's school support development manager.

"Inclusive education works only if parents, children, schools and support services want it to work. If everyone pulls together it will succeed."

The four-day conference looked at SEN provision in Worcestershire and in the delegates' countries.

The International Education Conference is the latest venture of a partnership scheme between Worcestershire Local Education Authority and authorities in Sweden and Holland.

"What we want to do is show what we're good at because colleagues in other countries are interested," said Mr Kramer.

"We want to give special educational needs the status it deserves.

"Worcestershire has made a lot of progress with special education, but we've still got a long way to go."

Delegates have taken part in exchange visits in the past to see how different schools work.

, and future exchanges are on the cards.