By Canadian Press

Alberta United Conservative government repeals ban on school seclusion rooms

Aug 29, 2019 | 12:49 PM

EDMONTON — Alberta’s United Conservatives have repealed a ban on seclusion rooms in schools that was brought in by the previous NDP government.

The ban on the rooms, which are meant to give disruptive students a place to settle down, was to take effect next week.

Education Minister Adriana LaGrange says the UCP government will proceed “in a more measured way.”

She says feedback from school boards and teachers suggested a ban on seclusion rooms would limit a school’s ability to protect the safety of everyone.

LaGrange says new rules on how to use the rooms will be in place by October and interim guidelines should be followed until then.

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Those guidelines say seclusion and physical restraint are only to be used when children’s behaviour could be harmful to themselves or to others.

They also say seclusion rooms are only to be used in a crisis and not to manage day-to-day behaviour.

Last week, four of Alberta’s largest school boards urged the province to bring back seclusion rooms before the school year started. 

The Canadian Press