RRN responds to DfE report into restraint and restrictive practices in schools

The Department for Education’s latest report, Reasonable force, restraint & restrictive practices in alternative provision and special schools has further highlighted the urgent need for updated guidance on the use of restraint and restrictive practices within schools.

The RRN welcomes the research report, released in March 2024, as progress in moving towards updated guidance. Without suitable guidance, it can be difficult for teachers to make best-interest decisions. Amongst issues highlighted in the report is current guidance’s unintentional sanctioning of the use of restraint to maintain good order and discipline. Further issues highlighted include:

• A lack of consistency in use of terminology, impeding robust data monitoring and reporting.
• Euphemising terms for restrictive practices, minimising their traumatic impact.
• Inconsistency in schools’ recording and reporting of incidents, both to families and regulators.

The RRN remains concerned that schools are left to procure their own training within an unregulated field. We are further troubled at findings that unregulated training providers hold significant influence on culture and approaches to using restraint within schools. It is vital that any training that includes a restrictive component focuses primarily on prevention and de-escalation and is quality assured.

Other sectors have taken strides to ensure this. The introduction of the Use of Force Act signalled progress within adult mental health services, with the requirement to only use training that has been certified as meeting the RRN Training Standards. An independent evaluation showed that training certified as meeting the RRN Training Standards improves practice, and the development of new guidance presents an opportunity for the education sector to follow suit.

New, statutory, guidance that is fit for purpose, supporting teachers in their role, and protecting children from unacceptable practices, is needed now.

Guidance must be specific, ensuring practice adheres to requirements of the Human Rights Act. Most restrictive practices in schools will fail to meet the test of being lawful, justified, proportionate, and least restrictive. For any action to be considered proportionate and least restrictive, all preventative options must first be exhausted.

Guidance must also require statutory recording, reporting and publication of data on use of restrictive practices. The use of standardised, non-euphemistic language to describe incidents, e.g. ‘solitary confinement’ rather than ‘time out’, will aid accurate reporting and better acknowledge the impact these practices have.

In addition, in developing new guidance, it is vital that the Department for Education commission and publish research into the views of children, young people and families with lived experience of being restrained to inform the new policy guidance. 

Ben Higgins, RRN CEO, said: “The Department for Education report highlights the difficult situation schools are operating within. Schools are currently working in challenging circumstances without any clear guidance around restraint and restrictive practices. We need robust statutory guidance so that all schools, not most, are using it.

“We welcome the focus many schools have on prevention and de-escalation. It is vital that staff only receive training in restrictive practices once they have received training in prevention and human rights that allows them the chance to hear directly from people with lived experience of restraint. Training that is certified as complying with the RRN Training Standards ensures this is the case.

“The RRN welcomes developments in this area and is calling for updated and robust guidance to be published urgently to protect not only children and young people, but also wider teaching and support staff.”

The RRN notes that there is no mention of trauma in the DfE report even though all forms of restrictive practice can and do result in harm, and it is vitally important to acknowledge trauma-based needs in children and young people.

Improved guidance and policy alone will not change practice. However, they are essential components for positive change. The RRN promotes the Six Core Strategies as a systemic approach to culture change and reducing restrictive practices. The Six Core Strategies provide a framework to enable cultural change in support of restraint reduction that includes:

1. Leadership – at both organisational and practice levels.
2. Data collection and analysis – using evidence-based decision-making, and monitoring progress.
3. Workforce development – training in preventative methods, rather than reactive.
4. Using prevention tools and strategies – with trauma-informed schools or Positive Behaviour Support.
5. Involving children / people with lived experience – informing reduction strategies at all levels.
6. Post incident support and debriefing – providing emotional support, and opportunities to reflect and learn.

You can read and download the Restraint Reduction Network’s Guidance for Government Departments 2023: 11 Key Principles to Inform Government Policy from the RRN resource library.