Punishment rooms in schools for children with autism.

[akaemmafrost]

I wish I was more surprised than I am. punishment rooms for autistic pupils.

Probably best not to read the comments if you don't want to spend your day feeling furious .

I stayed well away from the comments. Even considering the source (Daily Express), if there's any truth in this at all, then it's beyond awful that such vulnerable kids are being treated in this way.

is that the school that keeps getting mentioned on here?

I read this yesterday.

I did read some comments, one from a person who worked in a special school in Glasgow (where I am) explaining that these rooms existed & were needed for providing a 'safe place'.

I home educate my almost 9 year old, relatively new to it, but I am now discounting any idea of special school for him here.

Horrendous.

Ok, I read this, not the Express article :

www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2280017/Schools-accused-operating-secret-punishment-rooms-deal-severely-autistic-children.html

I stupidly read some of the comments, only managed to read 2 and a half and had to close the page but it sounded like one comment was made by someone who works with children with autism .

How has the school not been told to stop locking its pupils up yet?

The council said during the school's Ofsted inspection in May last year, the school was graded as 'outstanding' in respect of the behaviour and safety of pupils.

The above is from the DM article. Ofsted is losing more credibility with each passing day

TBH used correctly safespaces can be extremely useful. Of course a child shouldn't be locked up in one, but if you have a 6ft teenager who will seek out sharp places to whack his head when having a meltdown a soft room can be a better alternative than repeated trips to casualty for stitches and damage to the staff who have to try and stop him hurting himself.

It depends why they're being used, how they're being used and who for. Ds1's school has a couple of these: www.safespaces.co.uk/safespace-in-schools/ DS1 has never needed use of them, but some kids do, and it means those children can continue at a local SLD school and live at home rather than being forced to move into resi.

The DM article was awful. Ridiculous photo (as if kids with severe autism and going to be sitting there with their pencils in their hands taking notes) and even by DM standards idiotic comments.

Isn't the issue that these rooms aren't used as safe places to go, but instead children are being locked in them for long periods of time?

I've no problem with "Safe Spaces". I would have welcomed one when ds was at school, positively begged for it. They wanted him out and did everything they could to make his time there as difficult as possible.

I don't think they're being used as safe spaces though are they.

Oh possibly not (although being DM I thought some of the article was a bit ), but there is a move away from allowing them at all - which doesn't benefit anyone and can actually end up being very damaging for some children and young people.

One major problem I've noticed is that Ofsted inspections are usually carried out by regular mainstream inspectors. They really should use specialists to inspect special schools/respite centres etc - it would make a huge difference I think, would encourage good practice and properly protect the children and young people.

Although I think anyone who can express themselves well enough to say. 'I was left in there for a whole day once. They put food in for me through the door. They did it to most of the kids, it was something you had to get used to.'

shouldn't be in a padded room of any sort anyway (partly because it becomes recognised as a punishment space, whereas used correctly with severely autistic kids it's a calming space). Definitely dubious practices going on, but I worry that the baby will get thrown out with the bathwater due to a lack of understanding from people like Ofsted as to the needs of the most severe on the spectrum.