In short
Since 1 April 2026, schools in England have worked under the Department for Education’s guidance Restrictive interventions, including the use of reasonable force. Staff can still use reasonable force to keep pupils and others safe – that hasn’t changed. What has changed is the paper trail around it: every significant incident now must be recorded and reported to parents in writing, wherever possible the same day. Schools need a clear policy on when force, restraint and seclusion may be used, staff who are confident and well trained in de-escalation as well as safe holding, and risk assessments in place for pupils where the need for force can be foreseen. This guide walks through what that looks like day to day, and how to check your own approach holds up.
What did the April 2026 rules change?
The right to use reasonable force hasn’t changed. What’s changed is how schools account for it. Under the 2013 advice, recording incidents and telling parents were matters of good practice – so standard protocol varied hugely from school to school. Since April 2026, both recording and informing are legal duties for every significant incident, with the guidance setting out the minimum detail each one needs.
The scope has widened too. It’s no longer just about physical force: restraint without contact, seclusion, and the everyday decisions that stop a situation reaching that point are all now covered. For school leaders, that’s the real shift to plan around – not a change to what staff are allowed to do, but a much closer look at how consistently it’s recorded, explained and followed up.
Can staff still use reasonable force?
Yes. School staff can use reasonable force to stop a pupil injuring themselves or others, committing an offence, damaging property, or causing disorder. “Reasonable” means no more force than necessary, for the shortest time necessary.
Two points tend to catch schools out:
- A “no contact” policy isn’t acceptable. Schools can’t promise never to touch pupils, and shouldn’t agree to a parent’s request that force will never be used on their child. Staff need to be able to act to keep everyone safe – removing that option removes a genuine safeguard.
- Force can never be used as punishment. It’s illegal, and it also undoes the trust that effective de-escalation and trauma-informed care depend on.
What counts as restraint and seclusion?
- Restraint is any non-disciplinary intervention that immobilises a pupil or limits their movement, with or without physical contact. Standing in a doorway to stop a pupil leaving can count.
- Seclusion is keeping a pupil away from others and preventing them leaving. It should only ever be a safety measure – never a threat, and never a punishment.
This is where schools most often get caught out, and it’s usually not deliberate. A calm room, a locked door, or a member of staff blocking an exit can all amount to seclusion if the pupil genuinely can’t leave. The name on the door doesn’t matter to the guidance – if it meets the definition, it needs recording and reporting, whatever your school calls it.
What must schools record?
Every significant incident needs recording as soon as practicable, and wherever possible the same day. A significant incident is one where force goes beyond ordinary physical contact – gently guiding a pupil by the arm wouldn’t usually count, but holding or restraining them would.
As a minimum, the record should include:
- the names of the pupil and the staff involved
- the pupil’s needs, including any special educational needs
- the date, time, location and duration
- what happened, including triggers and the de-escalation tried first
- the type and degree of force used, and any injuries
- why force was necessary
- the support offered to the pupil afterwards
This still applies even when a behaviour support plan, agreed with parents, allows for the intervention.
Do schools have to tell parents?
Yes. Parents need to be told about each significant incident in writing, as soon as possible. The written report should cover when and where it happened, how long it lasted, why it was necessary, the type and degree of force used, and any injuries.
There are narrow exceptions – for example, where telling a parent is likely to put the pupil at risk of serious harm. In that case, the school tells another parent who can safely be informed, or the local authority.
What should the policy cover?
Schools need a clear policy – either within the behaviour policy or as its own document – setting out:
- when reasonable force, restraint and seclusion may be used
- the de-escalation and preventative approaches staff try first
- how incidents are recorded and reported to parents
- how pupils and staff are supported afterwards
- how incident data is reviewed
The policy needs to describe what happens in your school, not the guidance back at itself – “we follow DfE guidance” won’t hold up to a parent, a governor or an inspector asking what that means in practice. It should be shared with staff, pupils and parents, so everyone’s working from the same page before an incident, not reading it for the first time afterwards.
What about pupils with SEND?
The guidance recognises that pupils with special educational needs and disabilities can be disproportionately subject to restrictive interventions – something most SENCOs will already recognise from their own records. Schools are expected to understand each pupil’s triggers and make reasonable adjustments under the Equality Act 2010.
Where there’s a known risk that force may be needed, schools must have a risk assessment in place. Behaviour support plans should be developed with the pupil and their parents where appropriate, set out what actually helps, and be reviewed regularly and after any significant incident. A plan never replaces the judgement staff make in the moment – but a good one means that judgement is informed by what’s already known to work for that pupil, not a first attempt under pressure.
This is really where the wider point about behaviour sits: for many pupils with SEND, what looks like a discipline issue is often distress or unmet need being communicated the only way available to them. A risk assessment done well reflects that, rather than just logging a history of incidents.
Where does de-escalation fit in?
De-escalation is the first line of response, and the guidance expects it to be tried and recorded before force is used. In practice, that means:
- removing whatever’s causing distress, where possible
- adjusting tone, body language and personal space
- giving the pupil time, space and a way to calm down
- explaining calmly and clearly what’s happening
- using distraction or a calming activity
Before force is used, staff should be asking whether it’s necessary and proportionate, and whether it might make things worse. None of this works as a tickbox exercise done after the fact – it depends on staff reading behaviour as communication in the moment, which is a skill that needs practicing and refreshing, not just explaining once in an induction session.
What training do staff need?
Staff who may need to use reasonable force should be adequately trained – both in the safe, lawful use of physical intervention, and in the preventative and de-escalation strategies that make it less likely to be needed in the first place. The guidance doesn’t prescribe a particular program, so school leaders decide what’s right for their setting. Employers should also risk assess the roles of staff who regularly work where force may be required.
Common mistakes six months in
- Not recognising seclusion. Calling a space a “calm room” or “nurture room” doesn’t change the rules. If a pupil can’t leave, it’s seclusion, and it needs recording and reporting.
- Recording only the hold. A record that describes the restraint but not the triggers, the de-escalation tried first, or why force was necessary misses what the guidance asks for – and what an inspector or a parent will want to know.
- Leaving parents until the end of the week. The expectation is written notice as soon as practicable, wherever possible the same day.
- A policy that copies the guidance. It needs to describe your school’s actual approach, environment and procedures – not restate the DfE’s.
- Plans that sit in a drawer. Behaviour support plans and risk assessments need reviewing after each significant incident, not once a year on a schedule.
- Training only some staff, or too long ago. Everyone likely to intervene needs current training in both de-escalation and safe holding, refreshed regularly.
- Not looking at the data. Governors should be reviewing patterns, including whether pupils with SEND are disproportionately affected – the number that matters here is usually the one nobody’s pulled together yet.
How Timian supports schools
Timian’s training for schools is BILD Act certified and RRN compliant, and puts prevention and de-escalation first, with safe physical intervention as a genuine last resort – which is exactly the approach the April 2026 guidance is pointing schools towards. Courses can be delivered for your whole staff team on-site, or through our open courses.
[Talk to us about training for your school]
Frequently asked questions
When did the new reasonable force rules for schools come into effect?
The DfE guidance Restrictive interventions, including the use of reasonable force, in schools came into effect on 1 April 2026, replacing the 2013 Use of reasonable force in schools’ advice.
Is the reasonable force guidance statutory?
Partly. The sections on recording and reporting significant incidents are statutory, so governing bodies and proprietors must have regard to them. The rest of the guidance is advice that schools should follow.
Do schools have to tell parents when restraint is used?
Yes. Parents must be told about each significant use of force in writing, as soon as practicable and wherever possible on the same day, with limited exceptions where telling a parent would put the pupil at risk of serious harm.
Is a calm room seclusion?
It can be. If a pupil is kept in a space away from others and cannot leave, that is seclusion under the guidance, whatever the room is called, and it must be recorded and reported.
Can a school have a no-contact policy?
No. Schools should not adopt a no-contact policy or agree that reasonable force will never be used on a particular pupil, because staff must be able to act to keep pupils and others safe.
Does the guidance apply to academies and independent schools?
Yes. It applies to all schools in England, including academies, free schools, independent schools, special schools, alternative provision, pupil referral units and maintained nursery schools. It does not apply to further education colleges.
What training do school staff need for reasonable force?
Staff who may need to use reasonable force should be adequately trained in safe, lawful physical intervention and in de-escalation and preventative strategies. The guidance does not name a specific program, so leaders choose training that suits their setting.
Do we need to record restraint if it’s in a pupil’s behaviour support plan?
Yes. Significant incidents must be recorded and reported to parents even when a behaviour support plan agreed with parents allows for the intervention.
Sources
- Department for Education, Restrictive interventions, including the use of reasonable force, in schools, effective from 1 April 2026
- GOV.UK, Use of reasonable force in schools (collection page, including the previous 2013 advice)
- Education and Inspections Act 2006, sections 93 and 93A
