The European Agency for Special Needs and Inclusive Education (EASNIE) was established in 1996 as an initiative of the Danish Government, endorsed by the member countries’ Education Ministers, at the end of the European Commission’s Helios II programme. Its establishment reflected the need for a permanent and systematic structure for European collaboration in the field of special needs and inclusive education.
In 1999, following a three-year trial period funded by the Danish education authorities, EASNIE was transferred to the member countries. This formally established EASNIE as a European organisation with the mandate to act as its member countries’ platform for collaboration in the field of special needs and inclusive education.
The organisation’s original name was European Agency for Development in Special Needs Education. The current name formally came into effect on 1 January 2014 to better reflect EASNIE’s current and future activities.