Law

Here you will find lots of information relating to English law, legislation and guidance in relation to the lawful use of force for self-defence, the carriage and use of handcuffs, physical restraint and physical intervention.

The Challenges in Moving a Restrained Person Up or Down a Flight of Stairs

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Moving individuals up or downstairs under restraint poses numerous challenges for caregivers, healthcare staff and other professionals. This task falls under manual handling activities, requiring careful consideration and risk assessments to ensure the safety and well-being of both the person being moved and the staff involved. ‘slips, trips and falls are the most common cause of injuries at work’. In … Read more

The Use of Neck Restraints in Restraint Techniques: An Argument for and Against

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Introduction: The recent instruction by the Public Safety Minister to ban the use of neck restraints by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) has sparked a debate on the effectiveness and safety of such techniques. The RCMP’s Management Advisory Board has stated that neck restraints can be justified as a less lethal alternative to lethal force in some cases. Read … Read more

Has Aggression towards Reception and Healthcare Staff become Routine?

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Research studies across 5 countries including the UK, show that Aggression towards GP receptionists is a ‘frequent and routine’ occurrence. Fact sheets covering the period 2010 to 2018 recorded an increase in reported incidents of aggression from 6 per 10,000 staff to 10+ per 10,000 staff. How much more would these figures have increased by if staff felt more empowered … Read more

Pain Compliance on Children is Permissible & Why Adopt Standards For A Mental Health Unit, If You Are Not a Mental Health Unit?

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The use of pain compliance on children is an emotive subject, it is contentious and one that many organisations fail when issuing legally robust policy and guidance. NFPS has covered this subject in previous publications and links to these will be given at the end of this post. Of course, applying pain to a child is the absolute last thing … Read more

Serco fined £2.25 million for H&S Failings following the Death of Custody Officer

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Ms Barwell, a 54-year-old grandmother was kicked twice at Blackfriars Crown Court in 2015 during the restraint of a prisoner in custody. She died from brain injuries caused by the second blow. Ms Barwell had worked for Hampshire-based security firm Serco for 10 years when the attack took place. The incident led to an investigation by the Health and Safety … Read more

Ambulance Service Ordered to Pay £49,000 in Wrongful Dismissal Case After Staff Member Was Dismissed for Allegedly ‘Assaulting’ a 14 Year-Old Patient Who Had Attacked Him

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  A veteran paramedic ambulance worker who was assaulted by a 14 year-old was awarded £49,000 by an industrial tribunal after he was wrongfully dismissed for gross misconduct by his employer for allegedly assaulting a 14 year old who had attacked him. In August 2021 Mr Edwards, a senior paramedic with 18 years service was attending a call. It involved … Read more

Can we use techniques not taught during training?

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I recently posted an article on Linked about an article which appeared in the Guardian ‘North Wales Police Officer punching incident’. Well, the post attracted over 6,000 views with lots of very balanced and descriptive comments. Some challenging whilst others supported the video clip showing the officer punching someone whilst on the ground. Her (now His) Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabularies … Read more

Are the Use of Pain Compliance Holds Illegal?

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I was recently contacted about the fact that a pain compliance technique was being taught during a training cause. The point from the caller was that they felt that the technique should not have been taught because they are not legal and the banned.  Particularly for staff not employed in law enforcement or security roles! Whilst the philosophy behind any … Read more

The Importance of Writing An Effective Incident Report

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Writing and effective incident report is possibly one of the most important things you can do. This is because you may have to rely on it in one, two, three or even five to tens year’s time. And let’s face it, most of us can’t remember what we had for dinner last week! So keeping a good written record as … Read more