Few topics in our field carry the weight that restrictive practices do. They sit at the intersection of clinical judgment, human rights, organisational culture, and legal obligation — and for many practitioners, they remain one of the hardest aspects of the work to talk about openly, let alone change.
That is why we invited Sharon Paley to PBS Together for a live conversation on reducing and eliminating restrictive practices.
Sharon is the CEO and Founder of the Australian Centre for Restraint Reduction and Elimination, a specialist registered nurse with more than four decades of experience across disability, social care, and education in the UK and Australia. She is the primary author of government policy enacted in both countries, a Florence Nightingale Scholar, and a lifetime member of the British Institute of Learning Disabilities. When someone with that depth of practice speaks about restraint, it is worth listening carefully.
The webinar moved through territory that practitioners working in SIL and other NDIS-funded settings will recognise immediately:
What stayed with us most was Sharon's insistence that reduction is not a technical problem to be solved with a better behaviour support plan alone. It is a cultural and organisational project. The skills exist — but they need to be built, supported, and protected at every level of a service.
If you missed the live session, the full recording is now on our YouTube channel:
Watch the recording:
That is why we invited Sharon Paley to PBS Together for a live conversation on reducing and eliminating restrictive practices.
Sharon is the CEO and Founder of the Australian Centre for Restraint Reduction and Elimination, a specialist registered nurse with more than four decades of experience across disability, social care, and education in the UK and Australia. She is the primary author of government policy enacted in both countries, a Florence Nightingale Scholar, and a lifetime member of the British Institute of Learning Disabilities. When someone with that depth of practice speaks about restraint, it is worth listening carefully.
The webinar moved through territory that practitioners working in SIL and other NDIS-funded settings will recognise immediately:
- The human rights considerations that should anchor every decision, and what they mean for quality of life
- What "elimination" actually looks like as a goal — and how it differs from simply "least restrictive"
- The organisational culture and structural barriers that quietly sustain restrictive practice
- How to promote restraint reduction in a system where the skills to do so are not yet widely available
What stayed with us most was Sharon's insistence that reduction is not a technical problem to be solved with a better behaviour support plan alone. It is a cultural and organisational project. The skills exist — but they need to be built, supported, and protected at every level of a service.
If you missed the live session, the full recording is now on our YouTube channel:
Watch the recording:
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Sharon Paley
Sharon is a specialist registered nurse with over 40 years’ experience in disability, social care and education in the UK and Australia. She has extensive practice experience having started her career in schools and working as a family support worker.
She has extensive practice experience of working in and managing services for people with intellectual disability and complex needs, including risk behaviour, having also worked within forensic settings. Sharon is the primary author of government policy that has been enacted in the UK and Australia.
She received a Florence Nightingale Scholarship for her work on reducing and eliminating restrictive practice and 3 international awards for her work promoting behaviour support; and was awarded lifetime membership of the British Institute of Learning Disability, BILD in 2012.
Sharon is the elected Vice President of the Professional Association of Nurses in Developmental Disability (PANDDA) and is one of the longest service members of the Editorial Board of the International Journal of Positive Behavioural Support.
She lives in semi-rural Queensland, in the rainforest hinterland of Brisbane, with her husband and their Burmese cats. She enjoys walking, time spent with family, especially her grandchildren and will sell her soul for a good lemon meringue pie.
She has extensive practice experience of working in and managing services for people with intellectual disability and complex needs, including risk behaviour, having also worked within forensic settings. Sharon is the primary author of government policy that has been enacted in the UK and Australia.
She received a Florence Nightingale Scholarship for her work on reducing and eliminating restrictive practice and 3 international awards for her work promoting behaviour support; and was awarded lifetime membership of the British Institute of Learning Disability, BILD in 2012.
Sharon is the elected Vice President of the Professional Association of Nurses in Developmental Disability (PANDDA) and is one of the longest service members of the Editorial Board of the International Journal of Positive Behavioural Support.
She lives in semi-rural Queensland, in the rainforest hinterland of Brisbane, with her husband and their Burmese cats. She enjoys walking, time spent with family, especially her grandchildren and will sell her soul for a good lemon meringue pie.