Working in care, no two moments are often the same. No two service users express distress in the same way, and no two staff members bring identical skills or experience to the role. It’s this unpredictability that makes caring so complex, and why any approach to Positive Behaviour Management (PBM) training must reflect that complexity, not flatten it.
Yet many training models still ask staff to operate within fixed steps and rigid categories, to follow set procedures, escalation paths, or tightly defined techniques that don’t always translate into the real-world of care. At first glance, these tiers give appealing structure: staff know that they escalate only when necessary, following defined thresholds. But in day-to-day practice, they risk falling apart.
Training That Works With, Not Against, Everyday Pressure
Constant under-resourcing, high staff turnover, and the rising complexity of needs mean that a rigid, one-size-fits-all approach to training and career progression can quickly become a logistical and cultural mismatch.
If staff are taught techniques or models that feel alien to their environment, or don’t reflect the people they support, uptake suffers – and so does impact.
By contrast, a flexible training model can:
- Adapt content to the needs of different settings, populations, and staff roles
- Integrate seamlessly with existing shift patterns and team structures
- Allow for contextual discussion, scenario-based learning, and reflective practice
- Focus not just on “how” to respond, but on why
Flexibility Builds Competence, Not Just Compliance
Regulatory frameworks such as the Restraint Reduction Network (RRN) Training Standards and BILD ACT certification have moved the sector forward in important ways. These standards make clear that restrictive interventions should only ever be used as a last resort — and that training in challenging behaviour must prioritise prevention, communication, and dignity.
A flexible, relational approach to training creates space for deeper learning. It gives teams the tools to understand behaviour, to see beyond surface-level disruption, and to recognise the internal distress in the individuals they care for.
This kind of person-centred care can’t be developed through a rigid checklist. It comes from real engagement with the training, with space to challenge, question, and relate it to lived experience.
The Outcome: Training That Embeds
For your staff, consistency in training builds clarity, confidence and job satisfaction. For the people you support, it can mean the difference between escalation and resolution – between fear and trust.
Training is only useful if it sticks. Rigid restraint models – though once widespread – no longer match the complexity of real human behaviour in care. The shift toward adaptability isn’t a rejection of structure, but a demand for a more responsive, practical working environment.
At Timian, we believe effective positive behaviour management training must be flexible enough to reflect your team’s lived experience, adaptable enough to respond to complex, changing needs, and relational enough to build real culture change. It isn’t just about what’s taught, it’s about how it lives in your organisation.
For more information on our flexible training and upcoming live dates please get in touch.
