Headteacher and five staff suspended!

[Educationalshame]

Have name changed so not to out myself. My children go here :(
I received a letter and that is it. Teachers will not really speak about it to me. What do I do?? Reading the attitudes of the other members of staff "What are teachers supposed to do?" Does not reassure me. Advice? Thoughts? Anyone..

I think a 999 call, 'Child in immediate danger to himself or others, been locked in confined space,' would elicit a pretty quick response, if made.

So why wasn't it made?

I think that this will be the question for the staff to answer.

It's possible that many schools have somebody who could disarm a nine year old. But even if he's disarmed, if he's in a destructive mood there's still the problem of what to do with him.

Some kids can flip out with little or no warning. Some kids don't have an escalation process. Without knowing the full details of what happened, the background behind the incident and the way in which it was handled, it's too easy to hand out blame.

If the school summarily uses the isolation room as a matter of course, it's in the wrong and the investigation is the right course of action. Suspending so many staff members though? Surely that's a little heavy handed? But then, I don't know what the factors involved are, so can't do anything but speculate...and that's perhaps not the best course of action here.

Certainly in terms of the OP, I'd say that the school will probably be more secure and under closer scrutiny now this has happened than it was before. I'd be a bit concerned myself, if something like this had happened at my dd's school, but I'd talk to her and make sure she was comfortable with things before I made any decisions on what to do about it. I hope your kids haven't been affected too badly by this situation and that school doesn't become difficult for you as a result of this.

Thats the bit that did it for me as well Hotheadpaisan.
Zero empathy.

"The police wouldn't arrive in time to deal with the situation immediately."

I disagree, the police respond as fast as humanly possible to a 999 call from a school.

"Generally, if a situation with a primary aged child gets to a stage where calling the police is the answer, then the school have failed IMO. "

Maybe the school has failed this particular child. However its better for teachers to admit defeat, allow the experts to defuse the situation than someone get hurt. It is better for the teachers to keep the other children out of the way.

The school can worry about the educational welfare of the child once no one is in danger.

It does make you wonder why 6 members of staff need to be arrested. Surely, 5/6 teachers wouldn't have been wandering about the corridors? Wouldn't they have been in their rooms teaching, unless it was lunch/playtime, I suppose?? Are they support staff/LSAs/office staff?

They were suspended, pending inquiries.

I imagine that perhaps they are to be asked about their role in a possible (inappropriate) unofficial policy, without prejudice.

Assuming the Telegraph story is correct then it is definitely a police matter. Five teachers plus the head seems a lot of suspensions. I assume the five teachers must have been involved in the incident, which makes me think that it must have been pretty serious to involve so many adults with one child.

Absolutely appalling. Whatever the details, clearly something has gone very badly wrong here. LEAs don't suspend six members of staff immediately for a trivial reason or a small misunderstanding. Schools have a duty of care to children - it's basic basic basic that staff have to know how to deal with challenging behaviour, whether the challenge is caused by trauma or SEND or whatever. You don't just lock children up, FFS.

If I had had to lock a boy in a room with a knife, I would want Police help.

Otherwise I would (a) not lock him in a room, and (b) use my training and call others in the school to use theirs, to calm things down and get to the root of the problem - and also ask the LA for support for the future.

Or it's more than one incident.

When I was a learning mentor I was based in a room with 3 other people. Within this room was a much smaller room, just big enough for a couple of chairs. We used it when we needed privacy, it did have a glass panel and windows.

On a couple of occasions we had to leave a child in the small room alone as they were completely out of control. My SENCO, who was amazing, had to hold the door handle at times! We had all had training in positive handling and behaviour management. The parents sometimes had to collect their child from this room and never had any objections.

I have a feeling this could have been reported by the Daily Mail in a way that made it sound much worse than it actually was. I suspect there is more to this story than meets the eye.

'Add twenty or thirty years to your age. Would you want to live in an old people's home where they had a padded cupboard they locked you in if you misbehaved'

But you weren't ACTUALLY misbehaving. Your hearing-aid no longer fit and you didn't hear what you were supposed to do, someone tried to get your attention but you coukdn't understand. To save face and buy time you just nodded but that was clearly the wrong response causing you to sense anger in the other person who then took your arm to guide you.

Angry person taking you somewhere reminded you of your Ex' severe beatings and you screamed and struggled causing another adult to get involved at which point you try to run, beating your path to the exist, before being over-powered and locked in a room.

"On a couple of occasions we had to leave a child in the small room alone as they were completely out of control. My SENCO, who was amazing, had to hold the door handle at times! We had all had training in positive handling and behaviour management. The parents sometimes had to collect their child from this room and never had any objections."

Thornrose, you and your SENCo were acting unlawfully. If you had had decent positive handling training you would have known that. You were very lucky that the parents had no objections and were not litigious.

StarlightMcKenzie lots of mental hospitals, special schools do have "calm rooms" and sadly they do get abused. Nursing home prefer to drug difficult clients or lock their difficult clients in their own room.

There is a difference between an autistic child choosing to retreat and being imprisoned. It is frightening how vunerable people of any age get abused.

We did have excellent training. There are rare occasions which are not textbook and decisions were made in the moment. We always completed serious incident paperwork.

Yes. I know [sadly]. I have seem loads of special schools at least.

In my ds', when he's disruptive, they give him a massage. Lol. Not sure I agree with that either tbh.

Thonrose - that doesn't sound a million miles away from what has happened here.

Also, it's a lockable space, we don't know that it was locked.

It sounds like the room next door with the windows is the room they normally use as a 'calm down room' & I think quite possibly some of the reports from the children are about that room, not the smaller room without windows.

I think, as usual, the Daily Fail is picking and choosing the facts and frankly, the BBC are all 'sensationalise now and quietly retract later'.

ES - as I said earlier, I think the kids will be more than fine at school, whatever has or hasn't happend thus far, they will be taking pains to make sure the kids are OK now - they have a million eyes on them.

I think the papers etc have blown it all of proportion and quite possibly whoever took action in the first place has done so without actually listening to those involved.

I also think it's better for the children to go in and be a part of what is going on than to be kept at home in the dark and getting half truths from their friends.

But you have to do what you think is right for you and your kids - no one (sensible) would blame you if you kept them home this week.

The room was lockable, not, the room was locked.

There is a huge difference. Do any of the articles mention it was actually locked, or did I miss that bit.

Several rooms in my child's school are lockable, included the 'padded room'. That doesn't mean the locks are used.

Sorry it sounds awful but these children were in danger of hurting themselves or others. We tried so hard and this was the last resort.

Have reported the anti inclusion disablism.