Becky Gillespie

Huge thanks to @KeithCooper1973 and @theipaper for exposing the lack of meaningful, timely action by the @educationgovuk to protect disabled children in our schools from unnecessary harm. @bphillipsonMP

Finally, Mossbourne has responded to the damning safeguarding review from 3 months ago. The review author, Sir Alan Wood, outlined two ways in which they could do this - acknowledge the findings and make real change, or dismiss, dig-in, and continue the harm…

Remember this article - where the Government said they didn’t recognise the claims to abolish the SEND Tribunal last year - weasel words lawgazette.co.uk/features/send-…

Isolation and restraint are primarily used on elementary school students with disabilities who are male, according to a report by the American Civil Liberties Union and Disability Rights Washington. Black students are almost twice as likely as their white peers to be restrained or isolated, and low-income students are 2.5 times as likely as their non-low-income counterparts. #AgainstRestraint islandssounder.com/2026/03/14/bil…

The new guidelines were criticised last year by Caoilfhionn Gallagher (@caoilfhionnanna), the special rapporteur on child protection, who noted schools were obliged to provide only generic information regarding incidents. The circular outlining the guidelines explicitly states that the NCSE has no investigative role in instances of physical restraint. Gallagher said it had no way of knowing the identities of the children or staff members involved. #AgainstRestraint irishtimes.com/ireland/educat…

So much for listening to parents and families.... This is disgraceful. A betrayal of the most vulnerable. @bphillipsonMP @Georgia_Gould @educationgovuk

Sadly this all too real - the harm done by the system us appalling, and there's nowhere near enough accountability at institutional or individual level for those who harm families through error, omission, malice or lack of care. bbc.co.uk/news/articles/…

Babies are dying in accommodation for homeless families in England for want of a £60 cot and too many councils say they won't supply them: insidehousing.co.uk/home/unsafe-sl… With thanks to @K_Brickell @ProfLakhanpaul & @Sharedhealthgm

🚨🚨Important message for families and individuals who completed the ICARS Isolation, Seclusion and Removal Rooms in England's Schools survey. 🚨🚨 We have recently sent important and time-sensitive emails to some survey respondents. If you took part, please check your email inbox and spam or junk folder, as some messages appear to be landing there. Thank you again to everyone has taken the time to share their experiences. #AgainstRestraint

NEW POST: The Government’s use of unaccountable ‘experts’ for SEND reform is shutting down debate & excluding vital voices: those of parents and people across the sector who don't agree with them—and says Dr Kieron Smith, it's undemocratic: specialneedsjungle.com/shutting-down-…

Encouraging to see former Green Party leader Natalie Bennett (@natalieben) amplify this message. We were honored to open Dr. Ross Greene’s Lives in the Balance Global Advocacy Conference this year addressing the harms caused by punitive practices in English schools. #Againstrestraint.

There’s a lot to take in from the Schools White Paper – and much that we are concerned about. We’re still analysing the proposals in full, and will be publishing a full response shortly. For now, here are some of our early observations. 1/6

Tyler has no education - many care experienced children are in this situation "The plan states a school would need to give him a safe place to go when feeling overwhelmed and access to highly-skilled staff trained in trauma." @bphillipsonMP will the 'Tyler's' keep their EHCPs?

On the day the DfE release their white paper - a poignant reminder of reality for many SEND kids, traumatised in the name of education. Institutional abuse hiding in plain sight. @educationgovuk your proposals fail to listen, protect and change. Our children deserve much more.

@bphillipsonMP x.com/i/status/20260…

Our schools need to change because our children deserve the best. Today Labour sets out our vision for a country where every child can achieve and thrive. news.sky.com/video/educatio…

U.S. DOJ remains steadfast: 🔴Seclusion of students is intolerable. 🟡Restraint of students is only for rare emergencies. 1. Read DOJ's Feb. 23rd findings in Missouri: justice.gov/opa/pr/justice… 2. Join us in support of kid-friendly bills: livesinthebalance.org/take-action/

CW: AI generate child restraint and isolation room images. Today a day early than expected, we release "We Are More". This song centers the voices of children whose experiences have too often been misunderstood, minimized, or silenced. This is not just music. It is a message. A message to systems that confuse compliance with wellbeing. A message to policymakers who redraw lines without living the consequences. A message to anyone who has ever been told to be quieter, smaller, easier. Children are not problems to manage. They are not data points. They are not behaviours to control. They are human beings with rights, dignity, and lived experience. "We Are More" reflects what children have been telling us all along: Listen. Protect. Change. Watch it. Share it. Stand with us. Because children are more than what systems label them. They are more. #AgainstRestraint

When educators truly care.... "Schools have children in their care for such a big chunk of the week, and this time should be filled with love, laughter, learning, and connection."

👏👏 Inclusion is a way of thinking. It is how a school views children and families, how teachers are supported to adapt their teaching and how leaders design systems. In a nutshell it is whether difference is seen as something to be accommodated or something to be managed away.

This is not about party or politics. Disabled children continue to be restrained, isolated, and secluded in England’s schools. Preventing harm and death is a matter of human decency. #AgainstRestraint