Acknowledgements endorsements Background methodology executive Summary 11 Recommendations 22 Article — general obligations 38

Restrictive Practices in Schools (see also Article 24)

250. 
     Disability representative and advocacy organisations report that many children with disability in both mainstream and special schools are being subjected to chemical and physical restraint and seclusion under the guise of ‘behaviour management’ policies and practice.²¹⁰ There is strong evidence that children with disability are experiencing:
     
     1. 
        solitary confinement to small rooms or small fenced areas as punishment for ‘bad’ behaviour;
        
     2. 
        physical force, including being thrown to the ground and being pinned down;
        
     3. 
        chemical restraint by requiring parents to medicate their children, otherwise they cannot attend school; and
        
     4. 
        acceptance of self-harming behaviour without exploring why this is occurring at school.
        
251. 
     There is a lack of action, research and data on the incidence of restrictive practices on children with disability in schools across Australia, despite the fact that these practices are punitive, harmful and in many cases life-threatening.²¹¹
     

Case Study

A primary school implemented a ‘behaviour management’ practice that confined children with autism to a fenced area during lunch. The area had one tree, a bench and dirt covering. The practice was defended by the education department as a practice to support supervision of students with autism while they settle into school.²¹²