Paparoa Street School
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As required by the Education and Training Act 2020, Paparoa Street School promotes a schoolwide culture of wellbeing to ensure the kura is a physically and emotionally safe place for all ākonga and kaimahi. This includes understanding, recognising, and safely responding to ākonga distress, and minimising the use of physical restraint.
The physical restraint rules set out in this policy comply with the Education (Physical Restraint) Rules 
and the framework for physical restraint set out by the Education and Training Act 2020 (s 101).
This physical restraint policy also aligns with Aramai He Tētēkura: A guide to understanding distress and minimising the use of physical restraint , which provides a practical approach for recognising and understanding ākonga distress, providing acceptable physical contact, and minimising the use of physical restraint in kura. This includes eliminating unjustified physical restraint.
We follow Aramai He Tētēkura, which was developed in response to the disproportionate use of physical restraint on Māori, disabled, and younger ākonga. The kura complies with these guidelines to give effect to Te Tiriti o Waitangi, in support of achieving equitable outcomes for all ākonga. See Te Tiriti o Waitangi.
For information about how terms in te reo Māori within Aramai He Tētēkura relate to this policy, see this 
glossary.
This policy aligns with physical restraint rules and guidelines, but this information does not equate to the training required to safely use physical restraint. The only people who can use physical restraint at Paparoa Street School are kaiako and authorised kaimahi (i.e. non-teaching kaimahi that the kura has authorised to use physical restraint) who have the relevant training. This training includes the mandatory online learning module and physical holds training.
How we define and use physical restraint at Paparoa Street School
What is physical restraint?
Physical restraint, in the context of this policy, means to use physical force to prevent, restrict, or subdue the movement of an ākonga (or any part of their body) against their will.
In line with Aramai He Tētēkura, kaiako and authorised kaimahi complete mandatory online modules to understand the physical restraint guidelines and take further approved training modules in identifying stress triggers, understanding unmet needs, and preventing, minimising, and responding to ākonga distress.
Paparoa Street School does not allow seclusion or unsafe physical restraint in response to ākonga distress.
Seclusion
Seclusion is prohibited under the Education and Training Act 2020 (s 98) and is defined in Aramai He Tētēkura as putting an ākonga alone in a room or space against their will, which they cannot (or think they cannot) leave.
Unsafe physical restraint
We do not use unsafe physical restraint techniques under any circumstances. Unsafe physical restraint techniques include:
When can physical restraint be used?
Kaiako and authorised kaimahi may only use physical restraint if all three of these conditions are met, and only as a last resort.
imminent harm, including significant emotional distress to an ākonga or another person.Paparoa Street School kaimahi take proactive steps to ensure ākonga safety. This may include using physical restraint to prevent harm, for example to stop an ākonga from running onto a road, or coming into contact with a hazardous item.
Physical restraint rules
Paparoa Street School complies with the following requirements, as set out by the Education (Physical Restraint) Rules. References are provided for how each area relates to an associated rule.
Policy requirements and availability to the community
We fulfil the requirement to have policies on reducing ākonga distress and the use of physical restraint, and a process for managing complaints (Rule 4). Paparoa Street School manages all complaints, including those regarding physical restraint, through our concerns and complaints procedures. Where necessary, we follow up complaints with the Teaching Council, in accordance with their conduct and competence processes. See Concerns and Complaints Policy.
Our policies on reducing ākonga distress and the use of physical restraint are available to the kura community, and we are able to provide the names and positions of any kaimahi who are authorised to use physical restraint, if requested (Rule 6).
Authorisation of kaimahi
Under the Education and Training Act 2020, kaiako, including relief kaiako and people with a Limited Authority to Teach (LAT), are automatically authorised to use physical restraint. Other kaimahi, such as teacher aides, must be authorised by the poari matua (Rule 5).
Process for authorisation
Individual support plans
We have support plans in place for specific ākonga to prevent distress and de-escalate crisis situations. For information about creating individual support plans, see Reducing Ākonga Distress.
We ensure we have support plans for ākonga who meet any of the following criteria:
We do not include physical restraint in a support plan unless all other possible strategies have been explored. Paparoa Street School requires informed consent from parents/caregivers and whānau if physical restraint is included in a support plan (Rule 8). We monitor the frequency of physical restraint with the intention to minimise and, where possible, eliminate its use. The kura notifies the Ministry of Education if physical restraint is part of a support plan.
Notifying the use of physical restraint
After a situation involving physical restraint, we notify the following parties (Rule 9):
If the tumuaki considers that use of physical restraint was unjustified, they are responsible for following up with the poari matua and subsequent reporting to the Teaching Council.
Recording and monitoring physical restraint
Paparoa Street School monitors our use of physical restraint, and complies with record keeping requirements. We keep written records of every instance of physical restraint of an ākonga. We keep records for a minimum of 10 years from the date of last action (Rule 7).
We take reasonable steps to ensure that any ākonga who has been physically restrained and any kaimahi who has used physical restraint has their physical and psychological wellbeing monitored, so that appropriate support can be provided if there are adverse effects from the use of physical restraint.
We check for trends by monitoring and analysing records, particularly the increased use of physical restraint. If the trend shows increased use, we consider how to minimise use of restraint (Rule 10).
Reporting physical restraint
Kaimahi involved in an incident of physical restraint complete an incident report. The incident report and any other required information is submitted to the Ministry of Education through the online incident reporting system. We keep a copy of the physical restraint incident report in the ākonga file, and provide a copy to parents/caregivers of the ākonga (Rule 11).
Kaimahi training and support
The poari matua is responsible for ensuring (Rule 12):
The tumuaki assures the poari matua that all procedures relating to physical restraint have been followed, and that all requirements to notify, monitor, and report have been met. The tumuaki confirms that any non-teaching kaimahi have been authorised in writing, and that kaimahi authorised to apply restraint have received appropriate training and support. See Review Schedule and Poari Matua Assurances.
Release history: Term 4 2025, Term 1 2025, Term 3 2023, Term 1 2023, Term 4 2022, Term 4 2020
