Background
Grasslands School Division is committed to the care, welfare, safety, and security of all students and staff. Interventions during crises or conflicts are acts of care, not discipline. This procedure is grounded in the principles of Supporting Individuals through Valued Attachments (SIVA), focusing on proactive strategies that emphasize relationship-building, student dignity, and de-escalation.
Definitions
Safe Intervention: A set of actions intended to de-escalate a crisis or conflict situation while prioritizing the safety and dignity of the student and others involved.
De-escalation Techniques: Communication methods (verbal and non-verbal) used to calm a student and restore a sense of control and security.
Emergency Safety Intervention (ESI): Refers to a temporary, last-resort action taken to ensure the immediate safety and well-being of a student or others when there is an imminent risk of harm, and all proactive and de-escalation strategies have been exhausted.
Procedures
Prevention and Proactive Supports:
- Each school will implement positive behaviour supports to reduce the likelihood of crisis situations. Schools will communicate their behaviour support framework to parents/guardians annually.
- Staff will use a strengths-based, trauma-informed approach to foster positive relationships with students and create supportive environments. This includes the development of Working Individualized Safety and Engagement (WISE) plans.
- School teams should ensure that students have access to appropriate support spaces, such as sensory or calming spaces, that promote self-regulation.
Training:
- At least one school administrator and one other designated staff member (such as a learning support teacher) will maintain current SIVA certification. The principal may identify additional staff, including education assistants and classroom teachers, who should also receive SIVA training based on student needs.
- Wellness Mentors may also maintain current SIVA certification.
- Division-wide SIVA training opportunities will be coordinated by the Director of Student Support Services to ensure all relevant staff remain certified.
- Recertification training will take place for qualified individuals every two years.
De-escalation Strategies:
- De-escalation strategies should always be employed first to manage conflicts or crises. Staff will aim to establish safety and provide emotional support to the student, creating a sense of calm and security.
- Strategies may include:
- Speaking in a calm, low voice to create a sense of safety.
- Offering choices to the student. Use short statements/sentences with students to allow for processing time.
- Use common, familiar, and supportive language.
- Acknowledge and validate unmet needs or distress.
- Providing physical space and reducing sensory stimuli.
- Using known calming techniques, such as sensory items or calming spaces, outlined in the student's Behaviour Support Plan or their Working Individualized Safety and Engagement (WISE) Plans.
- Access support from Wellness Mentors and external mental health support during periods of non-crisis.
Emergency Safety Interventions:
- When safety is at imminent risk and de-escalation is unsuccessful, staff should utilize Emergency Safety Interventions.
- Emergency Safety Interventions are viewed as last resort interventions. This means that all other reasonable interventions have been implemented and have failed to prevent or de-escalate the situation and there is an imminent and significant risk to the safety of the student or others, and all other proactive and de-escalation strategies have been exhausted. This may include:
- The student attempts to injure/assault another person (staff/student/volunteer).
- The student attempt to injure themselves.
- The student puts their own safety at risk (e.g. moving toward an unsafe area such as a roadway).
- Emergency Safety Interventions should be minimally intrusive, of short duration, and focus on maintaining the student's dignity. Emergency Safety Interventions are not behaviour management tools. They are responses to critical safety threats, with the goal of returning to a supportive, relationship-based framework as soon as the crisis is resolved.
- Emergency Safety Interventions include:
- Deflective Techniques – if the student poses an immediate danger to themselves or others, staff may use temporary, non-restrictive measures to prevent harm.
- Guided Escort – staff may guide the student to a safe location, such as a calming or sensory room, where the student can regain control. Escorts must involve minimal physical contact and must prioritize the student's dignity and safety.
- The school principal or designated administrator should be informed immediately during the intervention. If possible, another adult should be present to assist if needed or observe from a distance.
- Staff must maintain a supportive, non-punitive approach, ensuring the student understands the goal is to assist in self-regulation, not to enforce compliance.
- If the student is unable to self-regulate, parents/guardians and/or the School Resources Officer/RCMP may be contacted by the school.
Post-Intervention Steps:
- Once the student has regained self-control, they should be guided to a calm, supportive environment where they can process the incident and recover emotionally.
- When the student is calm, they should meet with an appropriate staff member to debrief on the incident. The goal is to help the student understand the event and identify what could be done differently next time This should be done in a supportive, non-punitive manner.
- Parents/guardians must be informed of the intervention as soon as possible.
- Review and update the student's Behaviour Support Plan or WISE Plan to incorporate new insights gained from the crisis. Adjust de-escalation techniques, triggers, and support strategies to better prevent future incidents.
- Complete an Emergency School Critical Incident Report (Appendix A) immediately following the incident. This should include:
- A clear account of what occurred.
- The steps taken before, during, and after the crisis.
- Any recommendations for future prevention.
- The report must be submitted to the school principal and the Director of Student Support Services.
- A summary of the number of Emergency School Critical Incident Reports will be provided twice per school year.
School Critical Incident Report
| School | |
| Date and Time of Incident | |
| Location of Incident | |
| Student(s) Involved in Incident | |
| Report Submitted By |
Specific Details of Incident (Please attach on a separate page).
Staff Directly Involved in Incident:
Witnesses to the Event:
Additional Information (Contextual Information that is relevant to the situation):
What behaviours required the use of Emergency Safety Intervention(s) (ESI)?
What Emergency Safety Intervention(s) were used?
Who implemented the Emergency Safety Intervention(s)?
Approximate duration of the Emergency Safety Intervention(s)?
What time was the principal notified? Who notified the principal?
What time were parents/guardians notified? Who notified the parents/guardians?
Date of planned debrief:
Signatures: