Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent assessment he has made of the adequacy of the guidance issued by his Department on the use of isolation units in schools.

Schools are free to develop their own behaviour policies and strategies for managing behaviour according to their own particular circumstances. To help schools develop effective strategies, the Department has produced advice for schools which covers what should be included in the behaviour policy. This advice can be viewed here:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/behaviour-and-discipline-in-schools.

Schools can adopt a policy which allows disruptive pupils to be placed in isolation away from other pupils for a limited period. If a school uses isolation rooms as a disciplinary penalty, this should be made clear in their behaviour policy. As with other disciplinary penalties, schools must act lawfully, reasonably and proportionately in all cases. The school must also ensure the health and safety of pupils.

The Department regularly reviews the guidance issued to schools and updates it as appropriate.