What does the RRN Do?
The Restraint Reduction Network is a charity leading an international movement to reduce and prevent the use of unnecessary restrictive practices.
We are a network of committed organisations and individuals promoting positive, trauma-informed and human rights respecting cultures across education, health and social care services.
Is the RRN a quality assurance body?
The RRN is not a quality assurance body, regulator or inspectorate.
We do not regulate, monitor or quality assure organisations’ practices and have no powers to do so.
We are a UK-based charity that works to reduce restrictive practices. We do this by delivering qualifications to improve support, providing free-to-access resources, hosting educational events, creating training standards, and working in partnership with people with lived experience of restraint, their families and relevant professionals and organisations to promote positive change.
What are the RRN Training Standards?
The Restraint Reduction Network Training Standards are a set of ethical training standards that aim to protect human rights and support the elimination of unnecessary restrictive practices.
All restraint can cause harm. We know that an overuse and abuse of restrictive practices exists today. We believe that where training includes a restrictive component the highest, rights-enabling standards must apply.
In an unregulated field, the RRN Training Standards set a benchmark for training that focuses on human-rights, prevention and de-escalation.
The focus should always be on getting support right and promoting person centred, best interest and therapeutic approaches to supporting people when they are distressed.
Where did the RRN Training Standards come from?
In 2019, the RRN was commissioned by Health Education England to create the Training Standards. The Standards were coproduced with people with lived experience of restraint.
What does it mean for training to be certified as meeting the RRN Training Standards?
For training to be certified as meeting the RRN Training Standards, the training provider, approved curricula and authorised trainers have been scrutinised and found to have met the requirements for certification. These three elements must be present for a training service to be certified.
The Restraint Reduction Network licenses Bild ACT to carry out certification.
Not all training delivered by a Certified Training Provider will necessarily be certified.
A certified provider should clearly indicate on their website and/or training information which of their training programmes are certified against the RRN Training Standards and commissioners should check that the trainer is an authorised trainer.
What is RRN’s relationship with Bild and Bild ACT?
RRN is part of an alliance of charities comprising of Bild, RRN, Bild Association of Certified Training (ACT) and Respond. These are four independent charities with their own governance arrangements, who share a common set of values and vision for our society.
Where possible and appropriate, members of the alliance share resource, including communications, finance and IT support, enabling the charities to have greater impact. These are hosted by Bild with service level agreements in place with each charity.
ACT is licensed by the RRN to certify services as complying with the Restraint Reduction Network Training Standards. Other UKAS accredited certification organisations may also apply for a license to certify against the Standards.
What does it mean if an organisation uses training ‘aligned to’ or ‘meeting’ the RRN Training Standards?
Training services are either certified against the RRN Training Standards or they are not.
The Restraint Reduction Network does not recognise any provider as being ‘aligned to’ or ‘meeting’ the Standards.
Are organisations required to use training that is certified as complying with the RRN Training Standards?
The Mental Health Units (Use of Force) Act 2018 Statutory Guidance mandates that training providers must be certified as complying with the RRN Training Standards if they are delivering restrictive practice training within settings covered by the Mental Health Units Use of Force Act.
In addition, it states that Care Quality Commission (CQC) expect regulated services to use certified training.
While the Training Standards are not mandated outside the requirements of the Mental Health Units (Use of Force) Act Statutory Guidance, providers in other settings including health, education, social care, secure services and the security services can choose to use training providers and training that are certified as part of their wider commitment to reducing restrictive practices.
How do I find out if a training provider is certified again the RRN Training Standards?
Bild ACT keeps an up-to-date list of organisations who have completed certification.
You can find this on the Bild ACT website here.
Is there any evidence that the RRN Training Standards reduce restrictive practices?
In 2022, an independent evaluation of the Standards was conducted by Manchester Metropolitan University.
This evaluation found the Standards:
- were recognised as an important contributor towards a wider organisational cultural shift needed in the use of restrictive practices.
- raised the overall quality of training in organisations certified under the scheme.
- provided organisations with a form of leverage, reassurance, or legitimacy when trying to implement their strategies to reduce restrictive practices across services.
What does it mean if an organisation uses certified training? Will they provide a higher calibre of service than other organisations?
If a provider uses certified training, it means that they have used a training programme for their staff that is certified against the RRN Training Standards. They may also use other training that is not certified.
The RRN Training Standards aim to provide a benchmark for training that includes a restrictive component.
We know that improving training is a key part of organisations and services reducing their use of restrictive practice. However, training is only one piece of the puzzle and cannot on its own change organisational culture.
The RRN therefore promotes the need for organisations to embed the six core strategies of restraint reduction to take a systematic approach to reducing restrictive practices.
Does the RRN endorse any providers or companies or specific practices?
The RRN does not endorse any providers, companies, businesses, individuals or products.
The RRN does not recognise any practices, techniques or interventions as being ‘less restrictive’ than others.
What is the difference between RRN membership and certification against the Standards?
RRN Membership is free-of-charge and open to individuals and organisations who want to share their personal commitment to reducing restrictive practices.
Individuals make a pledge detailing the personal actions they will take, whereas organisations create a plan to reduce the use of restrictive practices across their services.
Certification against the RRN Training Standards mean that a training provider gone through the certification process, wherein a training provider, approved curricula, and authorised trainers have been scrutinised and been found to meet the requirements for certification.
An organisation’s membership of the RRN does not mean they have met the requirements of certification.
I am concerned about bad practice I’ve witnessed in an organisation that uses certified training, can the RRN help?
The RRN is not a quality assurance body, regulator or inspectorate. We do not check, monitor or quality assure organisations’ practices and have no powers to do so.
If you are concerned about training practice you’ve witnessed within a certified training service, you can contact Bild ACT. As Bild ACT are accredited by UKAS to certify training services against the RRN Training Standards, they can investigate issues raised with certified training services.
If you witness practice that concerns you, both within non-certified training services or within care or support services, you can contact the relevant bodies listed below.
If you think a crime has been committed, you should contact the police.
The Care Quality Commission (CQC) is the independent regulator of health and adult social care in England. They have information about reporting concerns here. If you have concerns about practice in a school in England, you should contact the relevant local authority.
Healthcare Inspectorate Wales (HIW) is the independent inspectorate and regulator of all health care in Wales, they have information about reporting concerns here. The Education Workforce Council can be contacted regarding concerns about practice in schools here.
In Scotland, Health Improvement Scotland regulates healthcare, and the Care Inspectorate regulates care services. Education Scotland is the Scottish schools regulator, information about reporting concerns is available here.
In Northern Ireland, concerns about health and care services can be reported to the Regulation and Quality Improvement Authority here. Concerns about education services can be reported to the Education and Training Inspectorate here.