Level 03 – Physical Intervention

Advanced Conflict Management & Clinical Holding Training

A specialist programme for clinical and care environments where staff may be required to contribute to safe, proportionate clinical holding to prevent harm. Designed to strengthen advanced communication, risk assessment, and coordinated team-based responses.

 
Duration 8 hours
Delivery Methods
  • In person
  • Standpoint
  • Affiliate Trainer Programme
Assessments
  • OBSERVATION
  • PARTICIPATION
  • SUPERVISED PRACTICAL DEMONSTRATION
Paramedic training

01COURSE OVERVIEW

Developing the specialist communication, assessment, and practical skills required to safely manage high-risk behaviour in clinical and care environments.

Participants explore complex escalation patterns, apply  structured de-escalation models, and contribute to safe, ethical clinical holding  within clear legal, medical, and organisational boundaries. The course emphasises teamwork, risk awareness, and post-incident responsibilities, supporting safer  outcomes for staff and those in their care.

This programme is independently medically reviewed by a consultant in emergency medicine – ensuring every technique taught is safe, proportionate, and clinically defensible.

02 THE IMPACT

How this training helps your organisation

  • Safer, more consistent clinical holding practice aligned with policy
  • Reduced risk of injury to staff and patients
  • Clearer, more defensible decision-making during high-risk incidents
  • Improved multidisciplinary teamwork and communication
  • Stronger safeguarding, reporting, and incident review processes
  • Increased staff confidence when facing complex behavioural presentations
Paramedics pushing

03.RISKS ADDRESSED

In clinical environments, poorly managed physical intervention can result in patient harm, regulatory investigation, and consequences your organisation cannot afford. Without the right training, your staff may:

Checklist icon Apply unsafe or inconsistent clinical holding techniques that place patients and staff at risk
Checklist icon Misjudge clinical, behavioural, or medical escalation factors in rapidly changing situations
Checklist icon Fail to recognise positional or physiological risks during physical intervention
Checklist icon Make non-defensible decisions under pressure without a clear legal or ethical framework
Checklist icon Struggle to coordinate effectively as a multidisciplinary team during high-risk incidents
Checklist icon Increase harm through unclear communication or role confusion
Checklist icon Undermine post-incident learning and safeguarding through incomplete reporting

The good news is that this is entirely preventable. That’s what this course is for.

04 LEARNING OUTCOMES

Here’s what your staff will be able to do differently:

Recognise and manage the three types of risk.
04 LEARNING OUTCOMES

Here’s what your staff will be able to do differently:

  1. 01 Recognise and manage the three types of risk.
  2. 02 Analyse complex behavioural, environmental, and clinical factors that contribute to high-risk escalation.
  3. 03 Conduct dynamic, evidence based risk assessments during rapidly changing situations.
  4. 04 Recognise and mitigate key risks associated with clinical holding, including positional, medical, and situational risks.
  5. 05 Apply advanced communication and deescalation strategies to prevent or reduce the need for physical intervention.
  6. 06 Maintain professional composure, emotional regulation, and clear communication under pressure.
  7. 07 Understand the legal, ethical, and professional frameworks governing clinical holding and restrictive practices.
  8. 08 Contribute to safe, coordinated team responses that prioritise dignity, proportionality, and least restrictive practice.
  9. 09 Work effectively as part of a team with colleagues and external services.
  10. 10 Demonstrate safe and effective management of bystanders during high risk incidents
  11. 11 Maintain dignity and reduce trauma for service users during and after restrictive interventions.
  12. 12 Support safe withdrawal, transition, and recovery processes following an incident.
  13. 13 Follow organisational procedures for reporting, review, and safeguarding.
  14. 14 Engage in reflective practice to strengthen personal capability, team performance, and service wide learning.
  15. 15 Recognise cumulative exposure risks and sources of post incident staff support.
London Ambulance Service
London Ambulance Service
View Case Study
More Case Studies
05 CASE STUDY

London Ambulance Service – All Frontline Clinical Staff

Since 2010, Stand2 has delivered Advanced Conflict Management & Clinical Holding training to all frontline London Ambulance Service staff. These teams  face some of the most challenging behavioural presentations in the UK, often in  unpredictable environments and under significant time pressure. 

The training equips ambulance crews with the skills to manage complex behaviour safely, recognise clinical risk factors, and apply non-harmful, least  restrictive clinical holding when absolutely necessary to protect patients and staff. 

Over more than a decade of partnership, London Ambulance Service has consistently reported improved staff confidence, clearer decision-making, safer team coordination, and a reduction in avoidable escalation during high-risk incidents. The programme continues to support patient safety and staff wellbeing  across the capital.

Stand2 has also delivered this programme to West Midlands Ambulance Service since 2006 – one of several long-standing ambulance service partnerships that reflect the programme’s clinical credibility and operational relevance.

Students laughing
06 Course Delivery & Assessment

A full day of specialist, medically reviewed clinical training – built around the environments your staff work in.

Delivery

This programme is delivered in person through structured theoretical input, supervised physical skills practice, scenario-based simulations, and reflective discussion. Every programme is preceded by a Training Needs Analysis to ensure full alignment with your clinical policies, operational risks, and the specific environments your staff work in. StandPoint, our online learning platform, supports the programme with additional resources and materials.

Medical review

All clinical holding techniques taught on this programme are independently medically reviewed by a consultant in emergency medicine and fully risk assessed by a NEBOSH-qualified practitioner. This level of independent medical oversight reflects the clinical complexity of the environments this training is designed for – ensuring every technique is safe, proportionate, and defensible within a clinical governance framework.

Assessment

Learning is assessed through observation, participation, and demonstration of principles in a supervised environment. Assessment is continuous and practical – based on how staff apply what they’ve learned in realistic, controlled conditions.

Certification

Every participant who successfully completes the programme is formally certified by Stand2, receiving a uniquely numbered certificate that confirms they have met the programme’s assessed standards. Each delegate is entered onto the Stand2 Training Register, which we maintain on your behalf – giving your organisation a clear, auditable record of who has been trained and when annual refresher training is due.

Training environment

Psychological and physical safety are prioritised throughout. All sessions are delivered with clear consent, trauma-informed facilitation, close supervision, and robust safety protocols. No participant is asked to take part in any activity they are uncomfortable with.

07.Frequently asked questions

Can’t find what you’re looking for? Call us or drop us a message.

Do staff need previous physical intervention training?
No. The programme covers all essential foundations – including communication, de-escalation, and risk assessment – before introducing clinical holding techniques. Staff with existing physical intervention training will build effectively on those foundations.
Does the course teach restraint or enforcement techniques?
No. Only safe, proportionate, clinically aligned holding options are taught. The programme is specifically designed for clinical and care environments – not enforcement or custodial contexts – and every technique reflects the ethical and legal framework of clinical practice.
Is clinical holding training a legal requirement?
Employers in clinical and care settings have a clear legal duty under the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 to manage foreseeable risks to staff and patients. The Mental Capacity Act 2005 and CQC regulatory standards both require that where restrictive practices are used, they must be lawful, proportionate, necessary, and delivered by appropriately trained staff. For clinical environments where holding may be required to prevent harm, structured training is not optional – it is a regulatory and duty of care requirement.
What is a Training Needs Analysis and why is it required?
A Training Needs Analysis is a structured assessment carried out by Stand2 before any Level 3 programme is delivered. It confirms that clinical holding training is appropriate, necessary, and proportionate for your specific environment, patient group, and risk profile. It also ensures the content and techniques are directly relevant to the clinical situations your staff face. The TNA is a professional and legal safeguard – for your organisation and for Stand2 – and is included as part of the process when you get in touch.
How do you ensure medical safety during training?
Every clinical holding technique taught on this programme is independently medically reviewed by a consultant in emergency medicine and fully risk assessed by a NEBOSH-qualified practitioner. All practical elements are delivered under strict safety protocols in a closely supervised environment. This level of medical oversight ensures that every technique is clinically safe, proportionate, and appropriate for the healthcare environments this programme serves.
What sectors is this course suitable for?
This course is suitable for clinical and care environments where staff may be required to contribute to safe, proportionate clinical holding to prevent harm. Stand2 regularly delivers this programme to NHS trusts, ambulance services, mental health and learning disability providers, emergency departments, community healthcare teams, and care organisations where clinical holding is a foreseeable requirement.
Is this course suitable for multidisciplinary teams?
Yes. The programme is specifically designed to strengthen joint working between clinical, operational, and support roles. Effective clinical holding requires clear communication, defined roles, and coordinated team responses – all of which are central to this programme’s learning outcomes.
How does this training support CQC compliance and clinical governance?
The programme is aligned with CQC expectations around restrictive practices, least restrictive principle, and the duty of care to both staff and patients. The independent medical review, the Training Needs Analysis, and the Stand2 Training Register together provide an auditable, defensible record of training that supports clinical governance, safeguarding, and regulatory compliance.
Does Stand2 training come with a certificate?
Yes. Every participant who successfully completes the programme is formally certified by Stand2 and issued with a uniquely numbered completion certificate. Each delegate is also entered onto the Stand2 Training Register, which we maintain on your behalf – providing your organisation with a clear, auditable record of who has been trained and when annual refresher training is due.
How often should staff refresh this training?
Stand2 recommends an annual refresher interval of 12 months for this programme. Clinical holding skills are among the most perishable of all workplace competencies – and in clinical environments, the consequences of skill fade can be significant for both staff and patients. The annual refresher follows the same full-day format as the initial programme. Stand2 will proactively notify you when your staff are approaching their refresher date through the Stand2 Training Register.
08.Start the conversation

This course is designed for clinical and care environments where safe, proportionate clinical holding may be required to prevent harm.

If you’re responsible for patient safety, staff wellbeing, or operational risk, we can help.

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Google Reviews

At Stand2 we go above and beyond to understand and meet your expectations. Here are some of our recent reviews.

As the trusted leader in conflict management, personal safety, and physical intervention training, we aim to elevate standards across the UK and beyond by bringing evidence-based practice, operational credibility, and expert instruction to every sector we serve.
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Excellent. Done a few courses over the years regarding conflict management and this was the best. Relaxed teaching and no one was afraid to make a mistake or ask any questions. Enjoyed this much more than my recent SIA renewal in all honesty.

Really thoughtful and experienced teachers. After the training I felt really confident in conflict resolution and physical intervention. Thank you now I know how to protect myself, the general public and my organisation if a situation comes up.

Very well structured course and effectively taught. Techniques and solutions were very helpful.

Very good! Other security companys should learn this Easy to learn


Fantastic course, gave a really easy to remember process for handling conflict management. Trainers were great, I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Really course, tutors were great especially Chris who made it fun and interactive

Really enjoyed the training Dave and Chris are very engaging

Engaging PowerPoint, really good instructors, time to practice techniques

I recently completed training at Stand2 and had a great experience. The course was well organised, engaging and delivered by Chris C, who explained everything clearly using practical, real-life examples. The training has given me greater confidence in managing conflict, assessing risk, and keeping myself and others safe. I would highly recommend this course to anyone looking to develop these important skills.