As Albertans prepare to vote for school trustees on October 20, 2025, they should
know that some school divisions still utilize the practice of seclusion and have
seclusion rooms.
Inclusion Alberta continues to call for a ban on these practices. These are not
teaching strategies and cause harm to all children, especially those with intellectual
disabilities who may not understand what happened or be able to speak up for
themselves.
A freedom of information request revealed that in 2024–25, Alberta schools had 116
seclusion rooms in just 11 of 59 Public and Catholic divisions. Students were
confined more than 7,000 times the year before.
What are seclusion and restraint?
- Seclusion: locking or isolating a student alone in a space they cannot freely
leave. - Seclusion Room: a room built specifically for this purpose.
- Physical Restraint: physically holding or immobilizing a student to control
behavior. This does not include physical escort which is brief and directional
contact that has the purpose of accompanying and inducing a student to walk
to a safe location.
Why this matters
Some districts no longer use seclusion, but others continue. We believe seclusion
should never be used—especially for children with disabilities. Investment in positive
behaviour supports and alternative strategies to support children who are struggling is
the only ethical response.
Alberta Education allows seclusion and restraint within Standards for Seclusion and
Physical Restraint in Alberta Schools that require: - Seclusion only be used in a crisis or emergency and a positive behaviour
support plan must be in place. - Parents first provide consent and be informed.
- If seclusion and/or restraint are used in a school, proper staff training be
implemented.
Despite the existence of the Standards, these practices are inherently unsafe, and
standards alone do not ensure students will not be harmed by the use of these
practices, particularly if they are not enforced or monitored. Families have described
how their children have been harmed in Inclusion Alberta’s Survey on The Use of
Seclusion and Restraint in Schools from 2018.
Where seclusion rooms exist
Between September 2024 and February 2025, seclusion rooms were found in the
following divisions:
Public school divisions:
- Calgary School Division
- Edmonton School Division
- Elk Island School Division
- Parkland School Division
- Pembina Hills School Division
- St. Albert School Division
- Grande Prairie School Division – not used in the 2024-25 school year for the
months data was available for - High Prairie School Division – not used in the 2024-25 school year for the
months data was available for
Catholic school divisions: - Calgary Roman Catholic Separate School Division
- Edmonton Catholic Separate School Division
- Grande Prairie Roman Catholic Separate School Division
No Francophone or Charter school authorities have seclusion rooms. Four Private
school authorities have seclusion rooms: Calgary Quest Children’s Society, Elves
Special Needs Society, Renfrew Educational Services Society, and Unlimited
Potential Community Services Society.
Among Private ECS Operators, only CASA Child, Adolescent and Family Mental
Health had seclusion rooms in the 2024-25 school year.
Read and familiarize yourself with the Standards for Seclusion and Physical
Restraint in Alberta Schools.
What you can do
We ask that all Albertans take the following actions in solidarity:
Contact school board trustee candidates
- With school board trustee elections fast approaching, now is a critical time for
families to raise the issue of seclusion and restraints with school board trustee
candidates. - We encourage you to email candidates and attempt to speak to them in person
before the October 20 election. - If your school division has seclusion rooms, ask:
Will you advocate for the division to end the use of seclusion and to limit the use
of restraint to situations posing an imminent danger of serious bodily injury, and
strengthen the application of positive and proactive approaches? - If your school division does not have seclusion rooms, ask:
Will you advocate for the division to limit the use of restraint to situations posing
an imminent danger of serious bodily injury, and strengthen the application of positive
and proactive approaches?
Speak with your child’s Principal - Ask if the school has a seclusion room.
- If yes, ask to see it.
- Request a copy of school and district policies.
- State clearly that you do not consent to your child being placed in seclusion.
- Ask how they are supporting staff to access professional learning opportunities
in implementing positive and proactive strategies to reduce the need for crisis
response strategies. - Point out that most Alberta divisions no longer use seclusion and ask if the
school will commit to closing theirs.
Share what you learn - To support the call for a ban on seclusion and restraint, Inclusion Alberta
invites you to complete a short confidential survey about your school
conversation.
Report all instances of seclusion, restraints or exclusion in schools or child
care using the National Exclusion Tracker
The National Exclusion Tracker is intended to collect details of each instance of
exclusion, no matter how small or frequent. Families are encouraged to complete the
survey each time exclusion happens.
Documenting these experiences on a national scale highlights the magnitude of
exclusion, raises awareness of practices that contribute to exclusion, and provides
data that can be used to push for meaningful change in schools, child care programs,
and education policy across Canada. Some of the other types of exclusion you can
report in the tracker are shortened school days, being denied access to child care or
out-of-school care, or being segregated.
Thank you in advance for your advocacy. -Inclusion Alberta
