DRAFT CARE AND CONTROL OF PUPILS:
| DRAFT CARE AND CONTROL OF PUPILS: |
| DRAFT CARE AND CONTROL OF PUPILS: |
| THE USE OF POSITIVE HANDLING STRATEGIES AND PHYSICAL INTERVENTION |
| RATIONALE |
| 1.Staff at school have a duty of care to act 'in loco parentis', that is to act in the manner of a caring and reasonable parent. This applies both to the care and control of pupils and reflects Kinson's stated aims to work in partnership with parents. 2.In fulfilling this duty staff must have regard to the Special Education Needs, Child Protection, Behaviour, Health and Safety and Equal Opportunities Policies and to act on advice and training provided by the Health Service, Social Services and the LA. 3.In all situations of care and control, including the administration of First Aid, staff should ensure that any physical contact is in response to the child's/children's immediate needs i.e. to support distress, to attend to injury, to protect them or others from physical harm or from causing harm or damage. Any physical contact must be appropriate to the nature of need and used sparingly and minimally to make the situation safe. All physical contact must be logged on the reverse of a yellow School Incident Report form (copy attached). All such contact should be clearly articulated to the Headteacher and pupil's parents. 4.In cases where a child's specific Special Educational Needs require physical 'assistance', such as lifting, staff will be provided with appropriate 'lifting' training. Similarly staff will be provided with appropriate training in the use of control or restraint for pupils when required. 5.Where a member of staff, helper or another pupil is subject to an incidence of violence in their normal duties a pink Violent Incident Form (attached) must be completed. Such incidents must always be reported to the Headteacher. These notes are designed to assist staff in acting within the legal framework with care and control of pupils. They do not offer a definitive or exhaustive list of actions and procedures. |
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| INTRODUCTION |
| This policy is designed to serve the interests of children and school staff. It draws heavily on good practice in Bournemouth schools and based on a model drawn up by the LA with the valued assistance of headteachers, teaching staff and professional associations. |
| THE LEGISLATION |
| The Education Act 1996, Section 550A, states that reasonable force and restraint may be used to prevent a pupil from doing, or continuing to do, any of the following: Developing risk of injury to self or others Injuring themself or others; Committing a criminal offence; Causing damage to property (including own property); Engaging in behaviour prejudicial to maintaining good order and discipline at school or among any of its pupils, whether behaviour occurs in classrooms or elsewhere. The use of force should never be a punitive action or seen by pupils, staff or parents as part of a school?s disciplinary approach or policy. |
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| AUTHORISED STAFF |
| The Act allows all teachers at a school to use reasonable force to control or restrain pupils. It also allows other people to do so, in the same way as teachers, providing they have been authorised by the Headteacher to have control or charge of pupils. These include teaching assistants, midday supervisors, specialist support assistants or voluntary helpers, including people accompanying pupils on visits, exchanges or residential visits organised by the school providing these individuals have received appropriate training. The Headteacher will inform explicitly the people concerned and ensure that they are aware of, and properly understand, what the authorisation entails. |
| ENTITLEMENT |
| Staff have the right to defend themselves against an attack, providing they do not use a disproportionate degree of force to do so. Similarly, if a pupil is at immediate risk of injury or on the point of inflicting injury on others, staff are entitled to intervene. |
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| RESPONSE TO INCIDENTS |
| Planned interventions Staff are informed of pupils who have a history or current circumstances, which indicate that they may require physical control or restraint in a pre-planned manner. Plans will be in place to address the needs of such pupils. These individual management plans [IMPs] and any risk assessments [RA] necessary will form part of the child?s IEP and will address: 1.the use of behaviour management techniques 2.the support available from other staff in managing the behaviour 3.reactive strategies to de-escalate a conflict 4.holds to be used after all other measures have failed Parents are involved to ensure that they are clear about what specific action the school might need to take Staff are involved to ensure that they know exactly what action they should be taking (this may identify a need for training or guidance); Additional support is identified and can be summoned if appropriate The pupil is taken to a specified place for their own safety wherever possible Medical advice about the safest way to hold pupils with specific health needs is sought if appropriate. Emergency interventions There are a variety of situations in which reasonable force might be appropriate or necessary to control or restrain a pupil. These situations fall into three broad categories: a)Where immediate action is necessary in self defence or because there is an immediate or imminent risk of injury to an adult or child. b)Where there is an immediate risk of significant damage to property. c)Where a pupil is behaving in a way that is severely compromising good order and discipline. DfEE Circular 10/98 gives examples of situations which may fall within these categories A pupil attacks a member of staff or another pupil; Pupils are fighting; A pupil on the verge of, or actually causing deliberate damage or vandalism to property; A pupil running in a corridor or on a stairway in a way which might cause an accident that is likely to injure him/herself or others; A pupil absconding from a class or trying to leave school (NB this will only apply if a pupil could be at risk if not kept in the classroom or at school). A pupil persistently refusing to obey an order to leave a classroom; A pupil behaving in a way that is seriously disrupting a lesson. In all cases i)only physically intervene where there is clearly no alternative approach which would work in the circumstances (i.e. where there is an immediate emergency to resolve); ii)only physically intervene when defending or protecting; iii)only use the minimum amount of force required for the shortest amount of time; iv)always make sure that the pupil is safe throughout any period of physical contact or restraint - stop if a child shows any sign of difficulty in breathing, sudden changes in colour, distress, vomiting; v)always record incidents of use of force and evaluate with the member of staff concerned the interventions to inform future management of the pupil/staff situations. Remember - the use of physical force is a last resort. Behaviour management techniques, including calming strategies, should involve using other staff if possible, or the removal of other children from the classroom, as an alternative to using physical force; which must be avoided as it can escalate and lead to violence against staff. The Pastoral Support Worker has a two-way radio and all classes with potential problems will also have one to call her quickly when needed. |
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| REASONABLE FORCE |
| There is no legal definition of reasonable force. Circular 10/98 gives some clarification of what might constitute reasonable force, but stresses that it always depends on circumstances. The Circular explains that physical force cannot be justified to prevent a pupil from committing a trivial misdemeanour or a situation that clearly could be resolved without force. Clearly, any act of force to control or restrain, must be consistent with the school policy and used as a last resort when there is no alternative. The degree of force that could reasonably be employed might depend upon the age and understanding of the pupil. This minimum force necessary is described in 'Application of Force' below. It is advised that, wherever possible, another member of staff is present if reasonable force is used, in order to assist and/or act as a witness. |
| PRACTICAL CONSIDERATIONS |
| Before intervening physically, a teacher or other authorised member of staff should, wherever practicable, tell the pupil who is misbehaving to stop and the consequences if this does not happen. Staff should continue attempting to communicate with the pupil throughout the incident and make it clear that physical contact or restraint will stop, as soon as it ceases to be necessary. A calm and measured approach to a situation is needed and staff should never give the impression that they have lost their temper or are acting out of anger of frustration or to punish the pupil. Under some circumstances staff are advised not to intervene in an incident without help, unless in an emergency, e.g. when dealing with an older or larger pupil, a group of pupils or if members of staff believe themselves to be at risk of injury. In these circumstances, staff should remove other pupils who might be at risk and summon assistance from colleagues, or where necessary, phone the Police. This is consistent with LA advice. The member of staff should inform the pupil(s) that help has been requested. Until assistance arrives they should continue to diffuse the situation orally and to prevent the incident from escalating. |
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| APPLICATION OF FORCE |
| Physical intervention can take several forms: Physically interposing between pupils; Blocking a pupil's path; Holding; Pushing or pulling (in exceptional circumstances to avoid danger only); Leading a pupil by the hand or arm; Shepherding a pupil away by placing a hand in the centre of the back; Or (in extreme circumstances) using more restrictive holds. In exceptional circumstances, where there is an immediate risk of injury, a member of staff may need to take any necessary action that is consistent with the concept of reasonable force, e.g. to prevent a young pupil running off a pavement onto a busy road or to prevent a pupil hitting someone or throwing something. In other circumstances, staff should not act in a way that might reasonably be expected to cause injury, for example by: Holding a pupil around the neck, by the collar or in any way that might restrict a pupil's ability to breathe; Slapping, punching or kicking a pupil; Twisting or forcing limbs against a joint; Tripping up a pupil; Holding or pulling a pupil by the hair or ear; Holding a pupil face down on the ground. Staff should always avoid touching or holding a pupil in a way that might be considered indecent. Where the risk is not so urgent, staff should consider carefully whether physical intervention is right. Staff should always try to deal with the situation through other strategies before using force. All staff need to develop strategies and techniques for dealing with difficult pupils and situations, which they should use to diffuse and calm a situation. RECORDING INCIDENTS All incidents where physical force has been used by a member of staff must be carefully recorded and evaluated (see attached yellow Behavior Incident Form). Immediately following any such incident, the member of staff concerned should tell the Headteacher or a senior member of staff and provide a written report on the incident as soon as possible afterwards. This should include fully responding to all questions on the form in sufficient detail to make situations perfectly clear. Staff may find it helpful to seek advice from a senior colleague or a representative of their professional association when compiling such a report. They should themselves keep a copy of the report and one in the child's own log. Incidents involving the use of force can cause the parents of pupils involved great concern. Parents/carers should be informed of any incident involving their child and given an opportunity to discuss it. The teacher should inform parents verbally or in writing either straight away or at the end of the school day. It is recommended that the pupil concerned should be given the opportunity to discuss the incident and give his/her viewpoint. All recorded incidents of the use of force by staff are notified to the school's Chair of Governors who signs the Physical Intervention Log. |
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| COMPLAINTS |
| In the event that parents complain either to the Headteacher, Governing Body, Social Services Department or the Police, regarding the use of force against their child by a member of staff; the LA will support and advise to schools on how to respond appropriately to the complaint. |
| PHYSICAL CONTACT WITH PUPILS IN OTHER CIRCUMSTANCES |
| The LA's view is that staff may use physical contact to encourage or to reassure, but this will depend on the age, understanding and sex of the child. Physical contact should never be threatening or sexually inappropriate. Teachers and other staff in school will use their own professional judgement when they consider a pupil needs appropriate physical contact. Staff should be aware, whenever practicable, of pupils who for various reasons may find touching particularly uncomfortable; for instance, some pupils may be particularly sensitive to physical contact because of their cultural background or because they have been abused. Physical contact with pupils becomes increasingly open to question as pupils reach and go through adolescence and staff should also bear in mind that even innocent, well intentioned physical contact can sometimes be misconstrued. |
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