Open consultation Restrictive Interventions: Guidance for educational settings

Summary

Consultation launched on ‘Restrictive Interventions: Guidance for Educational Settings’

Documents

• Restrictive Interventions Guidance for Educational Settings - Consultation Version Adobe PDF (482 KB)
• Restrictive Interventions Guidance for Educational Settings - Consultation Booklet Microsoft Word (3 MB)
• EQIA Consultation - Restrictive Interventions Guidance for Educational Settings Adobe PDF (650 KB)
• Child Rights Impact Assessment- Restrictive Interventions Guidance for Educational Settings Adobe PDF (313 KB)
• Rural Needs Impact Assessment - Restrictive Interventions Guidance for Educational Settings Adobe PDF (329 KB)
• Privacy Notice – Consultation on the Restrictive Interventions Guidance for Educational Settings Adobe PDF (138 KB)

Help viewing documents

Consultation description

The Department has launched a consultation seeking views on ‘Restrictive Interventions: Guidance for educational settings’.

The issue of the use of restrictive practices in educational settings has emerged as an area of significant public interest in recent years, with a number of cases brought to public attention by parents and carers of children with lived experience of restrictive practices.

At the request of the then Education Minister, Department of Education officials began a formal review of this area in early 2020. The Department subsequently published interim guidance on the use of restraint and seclusion in educational settings in May 2021, whilst the review was ongoing. The overarching principle contained in the interim guidance was that the best interests of the child should guide all decisions taken by staff in relation to children in their care.

Following this review the Department subsequently developed draft guidance, which was consulted on in 2023. While stakeholders supported the need for guidance, there were divergent views on specific elements. To explore these further, a Task and Finish Group involving education, health, and children’s rights representatives helped refine the guidance. This led to the development of a revised version of the guidance; the Department is now undertaking a second public consultation on this revised guidance to ensure all relevant perspectives are captured.

The purpose of the guidance is to provide clarity to educational staff on the use of restrictive interventions, particularly regarding the requirement to record and report serious incidents of physical restraint and all incidents of seclusion. The overall objective is to reduce and minimise the use of restrictive interventions wherever possible, ensuring they are used only, in a proportionate, lawful, trauma‑informed and child‑centred manner. The guidance aims to safeguard children and young people, promote their dignity and wellbeing, support inclusive practice, and ensure consistent standards across all educational settings. 

The consultation is an opportunity for interested parties to provide views on the guidance. An Equality Impact Assessment consultation has also been published.

The consultation period will run from Thursday 12 March 2026 until Thursday 4 June 2026 for both consultations.

Public consultation event

As part of the consultation exercise, the Department is holding a public online event to hear views on the draft Restrictive Interventions: Guidance for Educational Settings.

This event provides an opportunity to:

• share views and experiences;
• ask questions about the draft guidance; and
• help inform the development of the final guidance.

Date: Tuesday 21 April
Time: 6.30pm – 7.30pm
Format: Online (Microsoft Teams)

In order to attend, you must register in advance via Eventbrite:
Restrictive Interventions Guidance - DE Public Consultation Event - ONLINE Tickets, Tuesday, Apr 21 from 6:30 pm to 7:30 pm | Eventbrite

A Microsoft Teams link will be shared with registered attendees ahead of the event.