First in a new four-part series from the BBC's Disability Programmes Unit that examines the lack of educational choices for disabled children and asks if they would be better served by being placed in "mainstream" schools with non-disabled youngsters.

Disabled adults recount chilling tales of their harrowing experiences of life inside the strict regimes of "special" schools. Bullying, public humiliation, isolation and corporal punishment were commonplace in these establishments, often accompanied by poor educational standards and low expectations.