How Positive Behaviour Support, person-centred care and effective communication work together to improve outcomes for service users and reduce restrictive practice
In health and social care, there is a growing recognition that behaviour should never be viewed in isolation. Whether supporting people with learning disabilities, autism, acquired brain injuries, dementia or complex mental health needs, the focus is increasingly shifting away from simply managing behaviour and towards understanding the person behind it.
This is the foundation of Positive Behaviour Support (PBS).
Positive Behaviour Support is much more than a behaviour management strategy. It is an evidence-based, person-centred approach that helps care providers understand why behaviours of concern occur, reduce the likelihood of them happening and improve quality of life for the people they support.
However, for PBS to be truly effective, it cannot exist as a standalone framework. It must be embedded within each individual’s care plan and brought to life through skilled communication, effective de-escalation and a commitment to reducing restrictive practices.
At GoodSense Limited, we believe that great care begins with understanding the individual, communicating effectively and using physical intervention only as a genuine last resort.
What Is Positive Behaviour Support (PBS)?
Positive Behaviour Support (PBS) is a proactive, evidence-based approach that combines behavioural science with person-centred values.
Rather than asking:
“How do we stop this behaviour?”
PBS encourages staff to ask:
“What is this person trying to communicate, and how can we better meet their needs?”
For many people receiving care, behaviour is a form of communication. Anxiety, frustration, sensory overload, pain, trauma, changes in routine or unmet needs may all influence how someone responds to the world around them.
When staff understand these underlying factors, they are better able to provide support that promotes dignity, independence and wellbeing.
Ultimately, the aim of PBS is not simply to reduce behaviours of concern. It is to improve the person’s quality of life.
Why Every PBS Strategy Should Begin with the Care Plan
A well-written care plan should never be seen as a document that sits on a shelf. It should be a practical guide that shapes every interaction between staff and the person they support.
An effective PBS-informed care plan helps staff understand:
- What is important to the individual.
- Their preferred communication methods.
- Known triggers and early warning signs.
- Sensory preferences and environmental considerations.
- Strategies that help reduce anxiety.
- Activities and routines that promote wellbeing.
- What has worked well previously.
- Approaches that should be avoided.
- Agreed responses if behaviour begins to escalate.
When every member of staff works consistently from the same care plan, individuals receive more predictable, person-centred support. This consistency builds trust, reduces uncertainty and often prevents situations from escalating.
Behaviour Is Communication, Not Simply a Problem to Solve
One of the most important principles of positive behaviour support is recognising that behaviour often has meaning.
Two people may display very similar behaviours for completely different reasons.
For example, behaviour may be influenced by:
- Communication difficulties.
- Autism or sensory processing differences.
- Physical pain or illness.
- Changes in routine.
- Trauma or adverse life experiences.
- Fear or anxiety.
- Environmental factors.
- Unmet emotional needs.
Rather than focusing solely on what someone is doing, PBS encourages staff to explore why it is happening.
Understanding this distinction is often the key to providing truly person-centred care.
PBS, De-escalation and Physical Intervention: They Are Not Competing Approaches
One of the biggest misconceptions within health and social care is that Positive Behaviour Support, conflict resolution and physical intervention are separate disciplines.
In reality, they are most effective when they work together as part of a single, person-centred approach.
Think of it as a continuum.
Step One: Positive Behaviour Support Provides the Foundation
Positive Behaviour Support helps us understand the individual.
It encourages staff to explore:
- The person’s strengths
- What matters to them
- Their communication preferences
- Known triggers
- Environmental influences
- Proactive strategies that support success
This understanding forms the basis of the individual’s care plan and helps everyone provide consistent support.
The better we understand the person, the more likely we are to prevent situations from escalating.
Step Two: Communication and De-escalation Bring the Care Plan to Life
Knowing someone’s triggers is only valuable if staff have the confidence and communication skills to respond effectively.
This is where conflict resolution training and De-escalation training become essential.
Every interaction offers an opportunity either to reduce anxiety or unintentionally increase it.
Effective communication helps staff to:
- Build rapport
- Demonstrate empathy
- Recognise early signs of distress
- Adapt their approach
- Reduce emotional escalation
- Maintain professional boundaries
- Promote choice and control
- Support emotional regulation
These are sometimes described as “soft skills.”
In reality, they are some of the most important safety skills any care professional can possess.
The ability to communicate calmly, confidently and consistently is often what prevents behaviour developing into crisis.
Step Three: Physical Intervention Is the Last Resort
Despite the very best planning, communication and proactive support, there may occasionally be situations where there is an immediate risk of harm.
Only then should restrictive physical intervention be considered.
Even then, interventions should always be:
- Lawful
- Necessary
- Reasonable
- Proportionate
- The least restrictive option available
- Consistent with the individual’s care plan and organisational policy
Physical intervention should never replace Positive Behaviour Support.
Instead, it should sit at the very end of a continuum where every reasonable opportunity has first been taken to understand, communicate and de-escalate.
Following any restrictive intervention, organisations should reflect on an important question:
“What can we learn to reduce the likelihood of this happening again?”
That question brings us straight back to Positive Behaviour Support—continually improving care rather than simply responding to behaviour.
Why This Approach Matters for Care Providers
Embedding PBS into everyday practice offers benefits far beyond reducing behaviours of concern.
It helps organisations:
- Improve quality of life for service users
- Increase staff confidence
- Reduce restrictive practices
- Create greater consistency between teams
- Strengthen person-centred care
- Support CQC expectations around safe, effective and responsive care
- Improve communication across multidisciplinary teams
- Reduce stress for both staff and service users
When staff understand both the individual and the principles of effective communication, everyone benefits.
Creating a Culture of Positive Behaviour Support
Positive Behaviour Support is not something delivered only during challenging situations.
It should shape the culture of an organisation.
This includes:
- Understanding behaviour as communication
- Promoting dignity and respect
- Recognising individual strengths
- Encouraging choice and independence
- Reviewing incidents to learn rather than blame
- Supporting staff through reflective practice
- Continually adapting care to meet changing needs
When these principles become part of everyday practice, restrictive interventions become less frequent because staff are better equipped to prevent escalation.
How GoodSense Supports Care Providers
At GoodSense Limited, we don’t see positive behaviour support, communication, de-escalation and physical intervention as separate training courses.
We see them as connected elements of one person-centred approach.
Our programmes help organisations develop confident, compassionate staff through training in:
- Positive Behaviour Support (PBS)
- Managing Challenging Behaviour
- Conflict Resolution and De-escalation
- Communication Skills
- Trauma-informed Practice
- Personal Safety
- Breakaway Techniques
- Appropriate Use of Force and the Legal Framework
- Reducing Restrictive Practice
Our training is always tailored to the environments in which people work and the needs of the individuals they support, helping care providers deliver safer, more consistent and more compassionate care.
Final Thoughts
Positive Behaviour Support is far more than a framework for managing challenging behaviour. It is a philosophy that places the individual at the centre of every decision.
When PBS is embedded within personalised care plans and supported by skilled communication, conflict resolution and de-escalation, organisations create environments where people are understood rather than simply managed.
At GoodSense, we believe the best outcomes are achieved when staff understand the person, communicate with empathy and confidence, and use physical intervention only when every other appropriate option has been exhausted.
By bringing together Positive Behaviour Support, person-centred care, communication and de-escalation, care providers can reduce restrictive practices, improve quality of life for service users and create safer, more compassionate environments for everyone.