Positive Handling Training

Positive handling is an umbrella term used to encompass a variety of strategies to manage challenging behaviour and safely resolve serious incidents. Its aim is to reduce anti-social, aggressive and violent behaviours through a graduated response in order to protect those involved from further harm. Our positive handling training aims to minimalise the need for restrictive practice. Equipping your staff with the skills to manage challenging behaviours not only streamlines the agreed organisational response, it empowers them with the confidence to fulfil their duty of care to themselves, their colleagues and service users. 
 

Our Approach to Positive Handling Training 

The Law, Theory and Best Practice

Before any positive handling strategies, tactics and techniques can be explored, it is first necessary to introduce staff to the law, theory and best practice in relation to the use of reasonable force within a school setting. This provides staff with the underpinning they will need to inform their decision making when presented with challenging behaviour.     

Managing Challenging Behaviour

Being proactive in your organisation when managing challenging behaviour is the first step in defusing, de-escalating and calming aggressive conflict situations. Examining self-awareness and how actions impact on conflict, your staff will build skills in effective communication and behaviour strategies, including within lone working spaces.  

Personal Safety

Sometimes defusing and de-escalating techniques aren’t sufficient in resolving an incident, potentially putting your staff and service users into the dangerous situation of being physically assaulted. Your staff will be taught easy to recall breakaway and personal safety techniques to reduce identified risk and facilitate the quickest possible escape route to minimise confrontation and potential injury.

Positive Handling

When previous efforts to reduce risk have failed, it may become necessary to intervene physically. Using positive handling techniques that aim to reduce restrictive practice, your staff will be taught how to safely and effectively restrain service users, and when it is ‘reasonable’ to employ such strategies. All personal safety and positive handling techniques taught are accredited by the National Federation for Personal Safety Ltd. and are medically and legally audited annually.

Our Positive Handling 
Training, Learning and Assessment Strategy

Classroom

The first half of our positive handling training introduces staff to the law, theory and best practice in relation to the use of reasonable force. This gives staff an opportunity to ask questions to ensure clarity in their understanding, reflect on and analyse previous experiences, and examine scenarios raised by staff to practice effective decision making. This is followed by exploring a range of effective communication and de-escalation skills.

Practical 

The second half our positive handling training focuses on physical skills. Staff are introduced to personal safety and physical intervention techniques. In small groups, staff are able to practice the techniques which provides the instructor with the opportunity to offer further guidance and correction. Where possible, staff are given the opportunity to practice their new skills in scenario-based activities. A full analysis of the performance provides further learning points. 

Assessment

Our positive handling training uses continuous assessment where its primary objective is to test competency.