What do I do if my child is being restrained at school?

First, ask the school in writing for the incident record. Since 1 April 2026 schools in England must record every use of force, restraint or seclusion and tell you in writing, usually the same day. Then escalate. If a restraint hurt your child, or you are told it restricted their airway, breathing or circulation, treat it as a safety matter, not just a complaint: seek medical help, and if your child is in immediate danger call 999.

Step one: get the written incident record

Staff do have a legal power to use such force as is reasonable to stop a pupil hurting themselves or others, damaging property, or seriously disrupting good order (Education and Inspections Act 2006, s.93). What is new is your right to know. Under the Department for Education's statutory guidance on restrictive interventions, in force from 1 April 2026, schools must record in writing every significant use of force, every restraint and every seclusion, and tell you wherever possible the same day, even where it was part of an agreed plan. So you are not asking a favour. The sentence to put in your email is: “Please send me the written record of every use of force, restraint or seclusion involving my child, as required by the 2026 statutory guidance.”

Step two: check it against your child's needs

Read the record against what the school knows about your child. Ask for the positive handling or behaviour support plan and check whether de-escalation was tried first, and whether the triggers and adjustments your child needs were in place. Force may never be used as a punishment, and a child must never be held in a way that affects their airway, breathing or circulation. If your child is disabled, the school must make reasonable adjustments for them; restraining a disabled child instead of meeting their needs can itself be unlawful.

Step three: how to escalate

There are two routes, and you can use both.

1. Complain to the school, then the governors. Put your concerns in writing and ask for the governing board to review them through the school's complaints procedure. You can also raise serious or repeated incidents with the local authority's designated safeguarding lead, and with Ofsted.
2. Claim disability discrimination at the SEND Tribunal. If your child is disabled and the restraint flowed from unmet need or a failure to adjust, that can be unlawful under the Equality Act 2010. You can bring a claim to the First-tier (SEND) Tribunal yourself, without a lawyer, but it must reach the tribunal within six months of the act you are complaining about, so do not let that clock run down.

This applies whether or not your child has a diagnosis or an EHC plan. The protection is for any disabled child, including one whose needs the school has not yet recognised.

This page is general information, not clinical or legal advice.

This page is general information, not clinical or legal advice.