Becky Gillespie

We have been instructed to send a letter before claim to the Secretary of State for Education, challenging the Government’s SEND reforms consultation on the basis that it is unfair and irrational. Further details here: rookirwinsweeney.co.uk/first-steps-...

While children across England unwrap presents this Christmas, disabled children are unpacking something else: fear.
The fear of going back to school.

Because for too many disabled children, school isn’t a place of safety or inclusion. #AgainstRestraint

📢ICARS Person(s) of the Year 2025 Keith Cooper and Will Stewart 🏆
ICARS is proud to recognise Keith Cooper and Will Stewart
as our Person(s) of the Year for 2025. Their national reporting has reshaped public understanding of the harms faced by disabled children in England’s education system.

Great journalism, as practiced by Keith Cooper and Will Stewart today, and the investigative team at the Hartford Courant 25 years ago, serves the public interest, defends the most vulnerable and makes a difference.

"The UK placed 37th out of 38 OECD countries on this measure"

@droliverlewis.bsky.social @caoilfhionn.bsky.social @jentwright.bsky.social @oliverconway.bsky.social

The children have spoken.
England's children are telling the world what happened to them. It’s time England's lawmakers started listening and acting. #AgainstRestraint

Vulnerable children have been left with “terrible” injuries and trauma because of their treatment by staff at a taxpayer-funded private special school, The i Paper has been told

🔴 @KeithCooper1973 reports trib.al/wEssfQZ

Adam Dance MP speaking with emotion at a public event, hands on his chest, surrounded by a crowd. Protest signs can be seen in the background with messages including “No child left behind.”

Tonight at 9pm on Channel 4, Jamie’s Dyslexia Revolution airs — and I’m so proud to have been featured.

As someone with dyslexia, it means the world to see
Jamie Oliver championing this issue. Please tune in and be part of the revolution. #DyslexiaRevolution #ComeOnBridget

Logo for Legal Aid Lawyer of the Year Awards 2025

Very proud of our lawyers Jennifer Wright @jentwright.bsky.social and Katie Sinclair, finalists in this year's Legal Aid Lawyer of the Year awards - Jennifer for Public Law and Katie for Legal Aid Newcomer. A testament to their fantastic work for our legal aid clients @lalyawards.bsky.social #LALY25

🧵 In an English classroom governed by rigid behaviour policies, a child’s distress is overlooked, not because no one sees her, but because the system doesn't allow space for understanding it. Her torn drawing is more than sadness, it’s the fallout of punitive behaviour policies 👇 #AgainstRestraint

Autistic 12-year-old 'brutally' restrained in school calming room The way the boy was held on the floor in a special school was unlawful, a use-of-force expert tells BBC.

This is what £70,000 of taxpayers’ money on ‘de-escalation and restraint’ training gets you.

ICARS obtained this data via FOI (2018–2023) and submitted it to the SEND National Crisis Inquiry.

Another disabled child restrained. This is systemic. Gov’t must act.
www.bbc.com/news/article...

Boy left in school toilet for over 3 hours without food or drink, hearing told A primary school boy was left in a school toilet cubicle on his own and without food, water or supervision from 11.30am through to 3pm, a hearing has been told

A primary school child was left alone in a school toilet for 3+ hrs. No food. No water. Staff lied.
There’ll be hearings. But under new guidance?
Nothing changes for kids—just more £ for the Restraint Industrial Complex.
#AgainstRestraint
bit.ly/3RdF2Onint

A young child in a school uniform sits silently inside a transparent, cage-like box in a dimly lit classroom. Light streams in from a high window, casting dramatic shadows. In the background, an adult male in a suit appears to be yelling, his face contorted in anger and his hands raised. Other children sit quietly at desks. The child in the box looks emotionally shut down and isolated. The ICARS logo (International Coalition Against Restraint and Seclusion) is visible in the lower-left corner. The image powerfully symbolizes the emotional trauma and discrimination disabled children face through restraint and seclusion practices in educational settings.

In England, “good order and discipline” are used to justify restraint, seclusion / isolation. Disabled children are harmed — not helped — by this abuse of power. Manifestation of disability is not bad behaviour. #AgainstRestraint

Graphic with a large white gear icon and the quote: “When the harm continues, it’s not a failure — it’s a feature.” The background is a bold geometric design in shades of dark gray, cream, and orange. The ICARS logo is in the bottom left, and hashtags #WhatsBehindTheHold and #AgainstRestraint are in the bottom right.

If harm keeps happening, it’s not a system that’s broken — it’s a system working exactly as designed.
Restraint and seclusion aren’t accidental. They’re embedded.
Time to dismantle the machine.
🧡 #WhatsBehindTheHold #AgainstRestraint

graphic of a smartphone held in a hand. On the phone screen, bold black text on an orange background reads: “WHAT’S BEHIND THE HOLD?” A silhouette of a child's arm in a restraint extends into the frame. Below, the Instagram interface is visible with a caption that repeats the title and a visible QR code. The ICARS logo appears at the top corner of the phone screen.

Coming April 2025: The “What’s Behind the Hold” Survey
We’re calling on families in England to share their lived experience of the training behind restraint and seclusion in English schools.
Because behind every hold, there’s a child
A family
A story that deserves to be heard
#WhatsBehindTheHold

A behaviour policy document from an England Multi Academy Trust. It lists physical restraint techniques under "Positive handling strategies" including "Caring C Guide," "Friendly Escort," "Single Elbow," "Figure of four," "Double Elbow," "Wrap on floor," "Seated Wrap," "Half Shield," and others. Below the list, there is a highlighted section labeled “Breathing Monitored” next to a field for recording the number of staff involved. The ICARS (International Coalition Against Restraint and Seclusion) logo appears in the bottom-right corner.

If these restraint techniques are “safe,” why is this English Multi Academy Trust monitoring children’s breathing during use? This shows the risk to life for the disabled and neurodivergent children they’re used on.
When breathing must be monitored, safety is already compromised.
#AgainstRestraint

A social media graphic featuring ICARS branding and a modern abstract background in black, orange, gray, and white. The center contains a rounded cream colored text box with the quote: “PBS... is not intended for persons identifying as neurodivergent who do not have a learning disability.” – (State of the Nation Report, 2022). The bottom of the graphic includes stylized social media icons (heart, paper plane, bookmark, Instagram, Facebook, star, thumbs up), and two small ICARS logos are visible — one at the top and one in the lower left corner

Let’s be clear.
Positive Behavioural Support (PBS) is not for neurodivergent students who do not have a learning disability.
So why are millions in taxpayer money being spent to train as many schools as possible in PBS ?
#RevenueForRestraint #WhatsBehindTheHold

Graphic featuring a quote from the Irish Joint Committee on Disability Matters report, overlaid on the report’s cover design with the ICARS logo in the bottom right corner. The quote reads: “Behavioural interventionist therapies are ultimately founded on modifying disabled people's behaviour to meet goals decided by others; … therefore the Committee believe cannot uphold the UNCRPD principles of autonomy, dignity, right to identity and freedom from non-consensual or degrading treatment.” Text below the quote reads: “Aligning Disability Services with the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities – February 2023.

From the Irish Joint Committee on Disability Matters:
"Behavioural interventionist therapies... cannot uphold the UNCRPD principles of autonomy, dignity, right to identity, and freedom from non-consensual or degrading treatment." #RestraintForRevenue #WhatsBehindTheHold

A graphic featuring a photograph of a UK parliamentary-style setting with three suited individuals seated behind a green leather-topped table. In the foreground is a sign reading "SELECT COMMITTEE" next to papers, a notebook, and a glass of water. Overlaid text reads “Accreditation does not mean safety.” The ICARS logo, orange and black with hazard striping, is placed in the lower-right corner.

The T-wrap hold was removed from training in 2020.
Yet in 2025, it’s still being used in schools and listed in behaviour policies across England.
Why? Because restraint training is unregulated—no oversight, no accountability, no one watching. 👀 #RestraintForRevenue #WhatsBehindTheHold

Support @againstrestraint.com

The abusive use of restraints stems directly from a lack of training and oversight.

It puts vulnerable ppl at grave risk.

The character of a society is always illustrated in how it protects vulnerable ppl. Or how it does not.

YouTube video by Sky News Increasing pressure for autism mental health services

📢 Emma Dalmayne, CEO of Autistic Inclusive Meets (@aimautistic.bsky.social) and part of the ICARS Team on Sky News with her son Damien. ⚠️ This report discusses mental health & suicide. #MentalHealth #DisabilityRights #AgainstRestraint
🔗 Watch here: youtube.com/watch?v=SYnm...

The Autistic Teacher The Autistic Teacher, London. 68,156 likes · 7,107 talking about this. Autistic and proud! Sharing insight and understanding to help the autistic community.

"When we ask for accommodations, we are not asking for special treatment or being selfish. We are simply advocating for our needs to be met so that we can fully participate and contribute to the world around us." -The Autistic Teacher.

www.facebook.com/autisticteac... #neurodiversity #autism

Video shows North Texas teachers allegedly abusing autistic student; investigation underway "The District is aware of allegations regarding teacher misconduct in a special education classroom at Millsap Elementary School."

CW: Child Abuse. The video shows Alex Cornelius, a non-speaking 10-year-old autistic child, seemingly being slapped by his special education teacher. www.cbsnews.com/texas/news/v...

ICARS appreciate the concern regarding the video of a 12-year-old SEN student being restrained in a London school. At present, this is the only comment ICARS will be making. Our focus remains on supporting the family and advocating for necessary legislative protections. #AgainstRestraint

Digital graphic features a photo of Zoey Read, founder of ICARS, wearing an orange blouse with a neutral expression. To the right of her image, a quote in white text on a dark background reads: "Blanket behavior policies teach disabled children one lesson: that their needs don’t matter. Schools call it ‘discipline.’ I call it what it is—systemic neglect wrapped in cognitive dissonance." Below the quote, her name is displayed in bold text as Zoey Read, Founder ICARS, along with the website againstrestraint.com. The ICARS logo, featuring an orange and black circular design with the text "ICARS - International Coalition Against Restraint and Seclusion", is positioned in the lower right corner.

Blanket behavior policies don’t ‘manage’ behavior—they erase disabled children’s needs.
Children deserve equity, not restraint and seclusion. It’s time to dismantle policies that harm. #AgainstRestraint

This shouldn’t have to be said, but before supporting any proposed legislation, ask for the text and read it first. A good title doesn’t guarantee good policy. Dig into the details—who benefits, who is harmed, and what the long-term impact is. In advocacy, due diligence is everything. #ReadTheBill