Positive Behavioural Support
Duration: 1 Day
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Enquire NowCourse Overview
Positive Behavioural Support (PBS) is an evidence-based framework rooted in the belief that all behaviour has meaning. Rather than focusing on managing or controlling behaviours that challenge, PBS seeks to understand the function of the behaviour — what the person is communicating — and to put proactive strategies in place that improve quality of life, increase skills, and reduce the likelihood of distress occurring in the first place.
This one-day course gives care professionals a thorough introduction to the PBS framework. You will learn how to carry out functional assessments, identify triggers and setting events, and develop proactive and reactive strategies that are proportionate, person-centred, and least restrictive. The course also explores how to create and implement PBS plans that are practical, measurable, and genuinely reflective of the individual’s needs and preferences.
PBS is increasingly recognised by regulators, commissioners, and families as best practice for supporting individuals with learning disabilities, autism, mental health conditions, and other complex needs. This training will help your team move away from reactive, restrictive responses and towards a culture of understanding, empathy, and meaningful support. It is particularly valuable for services that have been asked to reduce restrictive practices or improve outcomes for the people they support.
Course Aims
- Understand the values and principles underpinning Positive Behavioural Support
- Recognise behaviour as a form of communication and identify the function it serves
- Carry out a functional analysis to understand triggers, setting events, and maintaining factors
- Develop proactive strategies that improve quality of life and reduce the likelihood of behaviours of concern
- Identify proportionate and least restrictive reactive strategies for use when behaviour does occur
- Create person-centred PBS plans that are practical, measurable, and regularly reviewed
- Understand the regulatory and ethical context for reducing restrictive practices
Course Content
- What is Positive Behavioural Support? — definition, values, and the evidence base
- Understanding behaviour as communication — moving beyond labels like “challenging behaviour”
- The functions of behaviour — sensory, escape, attention, tangible, and other communicative functions
- Functional analysis — gathering data, identifying patterns, and understanding the behaviour cycle
- Setting events and establishing operations — the wider context that influences behaviour
- Proactive strategies — environmental changes, skill teaching, lifestyle improvements, and communication support
- Reactive strategies — de-escalation, planned responses, and the principle of least restrictive practice
- Writing effective PBS plans — structure, content, and how to make them accessible to the whole team
- Monitoring and review — tracking outcomes, adapting strategies, and measuring quality of life
- The regulatory context — CQC expectations, Restraint Reduction Network standards, and human rights considerations