High Court Awards Damages to Former Pupil Over School Restraints

An individual is set to receive £18,900 in damages after a court determined he was repeatedly restrained and on one occasion held for almost five hours while attending his former school. This individual was a student at The Mulberry Bush School, located in Standlake, Oxfordshire, over ten years ago; however, the legal claim was resolved at the High Court on Friday. A judge concluded that school staff restrained him face down on three separate occasions, and that on 14 occasions, others used a towel around his room door to prevent his exit. The private residential special school stated it was “naturally disappointed” with the ruling and indicated it was “potentially seeking permission to appeal”. Amelia Walker, who represented the man’s family during the court proceedings, asserted that the restraints applied to him were “inevitably humiliating and degrading, as well as dangerous”. Judge Margaret Obi determined that the restraints amounted to battery, and that the act of being prevented from exiting his room constituted unlawful imprisonment. Catherine Foster, representing the school, contended that the man had been “restrained legitimately” 117 times at the institution on different occasions. She further stated that the school considered these restraints to be “a necessary and proportionate means of managing disruptive behaviour”. The judge expressed satisfaction that the individual was left “distressed and humiliated by the experience of being restrained face down”. She also noted that the school persisted in using towels to limit his movement, despite social services having previously “made it clear” that such a practice was inappropriate. In September, an Ofsted inspection concluded that pupils “thrive” at the “transformative” school, which inspectors described as having a “highly ambitious and broad” curriculum. A spokesperson for the school issued a statement, asserting that it was “important to note that the court found that there was no negligence” on the school’s behalf. However, they added that certain other aspects of the judgment were deemed “inconsistent” by the school when compared with prior hearings. The spokesperson further stated: “We have been working with children and families affected by complex emotional needs for 75 years and always endeavour to do what is right and best for every individual child.“This work is never done in isolation and we always work closely with everyone involved in a child’s care.” For updates, BBC Oxfordshire can be followed on Facebook, X (Twitter), or Instagram. Copyright 2024 BBC. All rights reserved. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Read about our approach to external linking.