Reading List

The sources below support the course content. The legal and inspection references are primarily for England, as the Children's Homes Regulations and Ofsted framework apply there. Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland use different guidance and are signposted separately.

• Children's homes regulations, including quality standards: guide
  Primary England guidance on behaviour management, restraint boundaries, safeguarding and leadership expectations.
• The Children's Homes (England) Regulations 2015
  Statutory framework for registered children's homes, including duties on behaviour management and recording restraint.
• SCCIF: children's homes
  Ofsted's inspection framework covering expectations for restraint, care, safety, leadership and children's lived experience.
• Positive environments where children can flourish
  Government guidance on restraint and restrictive interventions involving children and young people.
• Tell Ofsted about a serious incident in a children's home or secure children's home
  England guidance on notifying Ofsted when restrictive incidents form part of a wider serious event.
• Reducing restrictive practices framework
  Welsh Government framework on reducing restrictive practice across care, health, childcare and education settings.
• Care Inspectorate: Report on restrictive practices
  Scotland guidance on restrictive practices in residential services for children and young people.
• Holding Safely: A Guide for Residential Child Care Practitioners and Managers
  Scotland-specific guidance on physical restraint and residential child care practice.
• RQIA: Minimum Standards for Children's Homes
  Northern Ireland standards and oversight expectations for children's homes.
• Northern Ireland Framework for Integrated Therapeutic Care for Care Experienced Children and Young People
  Northern Ireland guidance on relational, therapeutic and trauma-informed care for care-experienced children and young people.

Across all four nations, the shared principle is to reduce restriction wherever possible and to justify it carefully when it cannot be avoided.