Isolation rooms in schools

[Chichi444]

Hello !

So my sons school has very strict behaviour policy which includes Isolation rooms which pupils are sat in without the freedom of leaving even for just going to the bathroom unless accompanied by a member of staff and and are expected to remain silent and have no school work given to them and these pupils are given no movement breaks.

This punitive measure is given for even the most minor slip ups such as not having the right uniform or for more serious behavioural issues.

My 11 year old son in year 7 and he was given two consecutive days of Isolation which he sat for 7 hours in a row without movement break so altogether 14 hours , for nothing which was severe enough for to be punished that way.

I was told that he was to sit a third 7 hours in isolation.
Ive decided to challenge their decision as I feel the reason for it didn’t warrant such harsh punishment.

Ive wrote to the principal requesting to review but meanwhile my son isn’t in school as the school told me that whenever he returns to school he will have to sit the isolation.

Now what I’m asking is has any parent out there ever challenged the school on such matters what was you experience and eventually the outcome?

Any input would be so helpful thank you!🫶

What did he do?

Even if he had done something serious that's a completely pointless punishment.
What do you learn from that?
I would be removing him from the school personally.

That sounds very severe. Though I have lots of questions.
7 hours in isolation with no work to do are you absolutely sure?

Is this in the UK and a state school?
Is this in the school's behaviour policy?

What a ridiculous pointless cruel punishment. They lose out on education, staff, I assume, have to supervise them so that's a waste of staff time, and 7 hours of sitting in silence sounds horrid. Pretty sure such a punishment would be illegal in my country!
Complaining probably won't get you anywhere though, sadly, but worth trying.

yes they don’t give them no work but if they have homework they haven’t completed they go ahead and do that but otherwise if they have no homework the just sat there.

yes 7 hours

Yes this the uk and a state school

I very much doubt he was given nothing to do. That would be pandemonium to try to supervise.

Have you had a phone call from a teacher to get a full report of what your son has done to get the isolation? Do you have a copy of the behaviour policy? I think you could call and check what work he is expected to complete in isolation.

Rather than going in trying to challenge the school I would be looking to work with them so that you can all support him to improve his behaviour so that he doesn’t get himself in this position again.

The use of this is not just a punishment it maybe also uses as a protective measure to enable other students to stay safe/maintain teaching and learning if behaviour has been disruptive. Even minor infringements may escalate if a student becomes argumentative/aggressive when asked where their pen is or to put a phone away.

By all means challenge if you deem the actions to be disproportionate to what your child has done/not done.

It does sound harsh, but if it means nobody disrupts lessons it might be worth it. If the school stamps out disruptive behaviour with this method, your son will benefit hugely when it comes to his GCSE years, and you will be grateful.

Mine had detention after school with a no activity/homework/study policy which felt like a colossal waste of time to me. In the GCSE/6th years it was untenable. So I permitted them to not go. When it accumulated it became head teacher supervised in their office - but work was allowed - which Atleast wasn’t wasted time.

It's irrelevant what he did . Isolation rooms as OP described is abuse , they solve nothing and they shouldn't be allowed. It's no suprise that there is a mental health crisis among young people

so this punishment wasn’t given for disruptive behaviour my son is doing well academically I had meeting with all his teachers and they all seem to be quite happy with him. The incidents which the school says he sitting isolation for are not taking place in the classroom.

Thank you @Tryagain26

Fighting or bullying?

@DelphineFox neither,
one was for simply searching inappropriate language into google translate that was marked down as racist comment I will let you guess starts with N and by the way we are in of mixed heritage so my son isn’t a racist in the slightest it would be very silly concept…

I would request confirmation of this in writing. Then make a formal complaint, if the school is not an academy I would contact ofsted. Putting a child in solitary confinement and removing them from the curriculum is not only abusive but illegal and does nothing to solve the issues.

That seems insane - i'd be looking for a different school if i could.

So why isn’t he following school rules?

I think the issue here is that he isn’t following school rules.

Has he been punished for two separate behaviours - googling a racist slur and another?

I also take issue wight he fact you are saying he can’t be racist as he’s of mixed heritage … as a teacher, if we allowed some students to use racial slurs whilst deeming others racist for using the same words the class room would become an environment split by racial profiles. I agree - he shouldn’t be googling that word at school and if he has questions he should ask you or his teachers. To say he cannot be racist due to being mixed heritage simply isn’t correct.

If the school doesn’t fit your values, move him. Most parents sign up to a behaviour policy through a pupil contract in the homework diary or something similar.

Just to note - I don’t agree with isolation rooms but they are often found in schools which have behavioural issues and need to remove children from the classroom for the sake of the other children.

I would talk to the HT and find out exactly why he is in there and what he is doing in there. Ask if he can have some school work or provide him with a maths / English work book if you are concerned about his learning.

@pinkdoughnutswirls

like I said he was searching the on google translate he’s wasn’t walking around openly calling anyone that that’s two different things!

Using ICT inappropriately is probably sanctioned by isolation ..in our school ( private) it's a loss of the equipment used...ie pro book or iPad plus an I school ' reflection '
What is the policy at your sons school ?
I agree isolation with no work seems harsh ..but maybe it's supposed to be boring to make it a punishment.
Our children who are isolated are allowed breaks the same as normal...just not with other children ...but with the person supervising ....and they are given lots of work !!!

Your son almost certainly violated the school’s acceptable use policy for ICT. He deserves to be punished. Part of moving to high school is becoming more independent. However, with independence comes responsibility and that includes digital responsibility.

We have an isolation room at our school. It serves multiple uses - it takes the disruptive behaviour out of the learning space and enables others to get on with their learning. The learners in isolation forfeit doing fun activities and the privilege of spending break times with their friends. Instead they are taken outside around the normal breaks. It also gives them the opportunity to work in an environment with less distractions (they work in cubicles).

I find it hard to believe that they are kept captive in the room for 7 hours straight. That would be cruel but on the same token, your Year 7 child does not NEED movement breaks. What he needs to do is take responsibility for his actions. He’s ’done the crime, now he needs to do the time’. Raise your concerns. You have right to do so but please don’t enable him to flout school rules.

So that would definitely warrant a consequence in any school for a) violating the ict policy and b) use of racist language. Schools cannot have different rules for different races, doesn't matter if he was "using" the word. Schools have to have a blanket ban on the word for good reason.

What was the other reason for the isolation?

If he wants to get back in the classroom then he clearly needs to start behaving. Why should those who want to learn and make the right choices in school have to put up with him? Why should the teachers? Teach him that actions have consequences, he needs to do his isolation time then behave and go back to the classroom.

I’m not disputing a consequence I’m disputing the 7 hour isolation consequence with no work! what is everybody not understanding?
amd also I’ve already mentioned he not disrupting anyone what are you on about?

is simply disproportionate to isolate a kid for 7 hours with no break for a wrongdoing such as his there was no violence no bullying and this incident wasn’t direct at any one in particular.

But even then my post seems to be lost at this point I was asking if anyone has gone through similar situation and what was the outcome after challenge?

btw on the behaviour policy it doesn’t specify the conditions of the isolation rooms so it is misguiding.