Hundreds of instances of pupil restraint in special schools
Since mandatory reporting was rolled out last September, the National Council for Special Education documented 850 incidents where physical restraint was used by school staff on children. Picture: iStock
Students with special education needs were physically restrained hundreds of times in schools throughout the year, prompting concerns from advocates about a lack of oversight, transparency, and investigation.
Children in crisis were physically restrained 850 times in school since last September, the vast majority (90%) of whom have special educational needs.
New guidelines on restraint in schools were introduced at the end of 2024.
Since mandatory reporting was rolled out for schools last September, the National Council for Special Education (NCSE) documented 850 incidents where physical restraint was used by school staff on students.
In just 16 documented cases, the students did not have special educational needs. A further 766 cases were categorised under “special educational needs”, while the remainder were uncategorised.
Schools are only permitted to use physical restraint in very limited circumstances when faced with a “crisis situation”, where a student is at imminent risk of serious physical danger to themselves, their peers, or staff.
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Restraint is defined by the guidelines as a "procedure where one or more adults restrict a student’s physical movement or normal access to his or her own body."
It must not be a school’s first option, and its use should be “measured”, “appropriate”, and carried out by a trained staff member, the guidelines say.
Under the Freedom of Information Act, the NCSE released the spreadsheet it uses to log and review reports submitted by schools.
However, it refused to release further "contextual data" about the incidents and redacted certain information it deemed could potentially identify schools, staff, or students.
This included the types of schools reporting incidents, the age of students involved, dates of incidents, as well as general comments about what happened.
It also confirmed that it does not hold data on incidents of seclusion in schools, and there is no mechanism for schools to report, as the practice is "strictly prohibited under any circumstances".
Seclusion is defined as "placing a student involuntarily in any environment where they are alone and physically prevented from leaving."
Guidelines from the NCSE tell schools it has "no role in investigating instances of the deployment of a physical restraint in schools", and that the requirement to report is to document the extent of the practice.
Derval McDonagh, chief executive of Inclusion Ireland, said it is deeply concerned by the NCSE’s own admission that it has no power to investigate incidents of restraint or seclusion in schools.
"It is equally concerning that incidents of seclusion are not being recorded with a stated rationale that seclusion is banned," Ms McDonagh said.
“We still do not know what happened to the children involved in these incidents, what support was put in place afterwards, or whether they continue to experience restraint,” she said.
Restraint can have a profound, long-lasting effect on a child’s life, she added.
"Serious questions remain unanswered. We have no way of knowing the level of harm children are continuing to experience."
“This is simply unacceptable and falls far short of what is required in safeguarding children from human rights abuses.”
Children and families need more than guidelines, she said. "They need proper oversight, accountability, and confidence that when an incident happens, someone has the power and responsibility to act."
Autism charity AsIAm said it is now almost two years since the guidelines were first introduced and that it is “simply unacceptable” that the Department of Education has failed to publish reported data provided by the NCSE, and that there remains no mandatory training on the use of restraint.
“The current guidelines are not robust, child-centred or rights-compliant and fall far below standards seen in other settings, such as health and social care, or in other jurisdictions.”
AsIAm is continuing to prepare a formal complaint on the matter to the UN Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, ahead of Ireland’s appearance in 2027.
Behind each reported incident is "a child in distress in school whose needs may not be met and human rights may have been compromised," AsIAm added.
"The reality is the practice of restraint and seclusion would simply not be tolerated for non-autistic/disabled children."
A spokesperson for the Department of Education said: "Incidents involving physical restraint can be very distressing to all concerned and are only used when there is a risk to the student’s safety or to that of others. For example, a student running into a road or banging their head against a hard surface."
"The department is monitoring reports of physical restraint and is working closely with the NCSE to ensure appropriate engagement with schools where such incidents arise."
“In addition, the Inspectorate now has a role in monitoring the use of physical restraint in schools and has gathered information on reported restraint practices in schools that have been subject to whole-school inspections.”
“Where concerns arise regarding a school’s practices, existing governance, inspection, complaints, and child protection procedures remain available.”
“Parents may use their school’s complaints procedure, while any child protection concerns remain matters for Tusla and An Garda Síochána.”
The following situations are not crisis situations, and physical restraint should not be used:
- A student is upset and escalating, but there is no physical danger;
- At the onset of a known sequence of escalating behaviours;
- A student is upset and refuses to leave a class or any area of the school when requested;
- A student issues verbal threats;
- An older student, who does not have an intellectual or learning disability, threatens to leave the classroom or the school and proceeds to do so unless an imminent danger to health and safety is deemed to exist;
- A student is damaging property in the school but not endangering staff or students.
- Jess Casey, Education Correspondent
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