Across schools, supporting behaviour effectively remains a complex and evolving challenge. Many settings are navigating increasing pressure around how best to respond when behaviour escalates, while also striving to maintain safe, inclusive and supportive learning environments for all students.
One area that continues to prompt discussion is the use of isolation or removal rooms. Often introduced with the intention of reducing disruption or managing risk, this approach raises important questions about their purpose, impact and alignment with a school’s wider values and behaviour support principles.
In many schools, behaviour-related concerns can feel more frequent or more intense, particularly where pupils are experiencing unmet needs, heightened stress, or difficulties with regulation. When responses rely heavily on removal from learning, it is worth pausing to reflect on what the behaviour may be communicating, and whether the strategies in place are helping students develop the skills they need to succeed in the longer term.
Isolation rooms, also known as removal rooms, are often used when a student breaks school rules, or if their behaviour is disrupting the class. These rooms are often seen as a way of ‘fixing’ the immediate issue, allowing teachers to re-establish a calm, safe and productive learning environment for other students.
Theoretically, a student removed from class should be monitored and supervised, talk about what has happened with a member of staff, and complete work outside of class until they are ready to return to it. However, this can vary significantly from school to school, particularly depending on staffing levels and space available.
However, the success of any approach must surely be gauged against whether it has a positive, longer-term impact on the behaviour of the student or students involved. After all, ‘quick fixes’ are just that: unsustainable, temporary ‘sticking plasters’ that can mask much deeper issues.
The question for all of us, then, is: do isolation or removal rooms work? Does this approach support a long-term positive change, or could it instead potentially detrimentally impact outcomes for children and young people?
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