NHS Training

PMVA- Prevention & Management of Violence & Aggression Training for the NHS.

This course is designed for NHS staff supporting individuals who may experience distress or display behaviour that challenges. It equips healthcare professionals with the skills to recognise early warning signs, prevent escalation and respond safely while maintaining dignity and respect.

Our BILD ACT certified training aligns with the Restraint Reduction Network (RRN) Training Standards, supporting least restrictive and person-centred approaches to managing risk in healthcare settings.

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Suggested attendees.

NHS staff frequently encounter behaviour that challenges from patients, families and members of the public. This course provides NHS staff with the tools to manage difficult interactions with professionalism and confidence, ensuring a safer environment for both healthcare workers and those they support.

Our BILD ACT certified training meets the Restraint Reduction Network (RRN) Training Standards and supports NHS services to embed safer, more respectful and least restrictive approaches when responding to behaviour that challenges.

Healthcare support workers and assistants – Frontline staff supporting patient care in busy environments. Learn practical techniques to recognise early warning signs, reduce escalation, and respond safely when risk increases.
Mental health nurses – Clinicians working with people in distress where behaviour can escalate quickly. Build confident de-escalation, dynamic risk assessment and safer intervention approaches that protect everyone involved.
Older adult and dementia care teams – Staff supporting people with complex needs, confusion or heightened emotion. Develop calm, person-centred strategies to reduce escalation while maintaining dignity and safety.
Crisis teams – Teams responding to acute episodes where decisions need to be made quickly. Improve confidence in rapid risk assessment, de-escalation under pressure, and safe actions when situations become high risk.
Clinical leads and ward managers – Leaders responsible for safety and consistency across teams. Support staff with best practice approaches, incident learning, and clear decision-making in higher-risk environments.

Course duration

3 Days

Course learners

12 Per Course

Trusted and accredited.

The Restraint Reduction Network (RRN) training standards are designed to ensure that any intervention used to manage challenging behaviour prioritises safety, dignity, and human rights.

As a Bild ACT certified course, our training aligns with these standards, promoting ethical standards that support the elimination of unnecessary restrictive practices.

Course content.

Click through our process slider to learn what to expect and what you will gain when taking this course.

Part 1:

Exploring challenging behaviour.

Understand behaviour that challenges.
Identify the importance of triggers and functions of behaviour.
Recognise patterns in an individual’s behaviour.
Emphasise a person-centred and rights-based approach.

Part 2:

Primary strategies.

Develop pro-active strategies for prevention.
Explore Positive Behaviour Support (PBS).
Developing positive (therapeutic) relationships.

Part 3:

Secondary strategies.

Use communication and de-escalation models.
Apply listening models to defuse situations.
Prevent and de-escalate escalating behaviours.
Explore person-centred distraction and diversion strategies.

Part 4:

Procedural, environmental and legal responsibilities .

Understand the law relating to challenging behaviours and restrictive interventions.
Follow national guidelines to behavioural challenges.
Recognise the impact of inappropriate attitudes and cognitive biases.
Explore the importance of incident reporting and recording.
Understand the post-incident review process.

Part 5:

Physical skills.

Develop strategies to ensure safety in response to behaviours that challenge.
Use distance, stance and positioning effectively.
Apply safe moving and relocation techniques.
Practice breakaway and disengagement skills.
Demonstrate agreed restrictive interventions.

Part 6:

Foreseeable risks and medical implications.

Identifying potential medical risks of implications of restrictive interventions including postural/positional asphyxia.
Understand trauma and its impact onto experiences of restrictive interventions.

Part 7:

By the end of this course your team will be able to:

Recognise challenging behaviour and its triggers.
Apply a person-centred and rights-based approach.
Prevent and de-escalate potential behaviours.
Understand legal aspects of challenging behaviour and physical skills.
Demonstrate physical skills for safety.
Document and record incidents effectively.

Part 8:

At the end of this course learners will receive:

A certificate of attendance.
Receive a course workbook.
Access to IKON Academy digital online resource area.

Training Methods

Flexible NHS Training Solutions for Managing Challenging Situations.

PMVA training requires in-person delivery to enable learners to safely develop and demonstrate practical skills. We provide a variety of delivery approaches to ensure your team can access and benefit from the right training for you and your organisation.

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In-Person Training.

Many of our courses, especially those with physical skills, can be delivered in a face-to-face in-person training environment, either at your venue or ours.

Affiliate Trainer Programme.

IKON’s train the trainer service enables your team to deliver accredited and valuable training that builds confidence and trust with their colleagues.

prevention & management of violence and aggression

To enquire about PMVA training, please get in touch.

PMVA (prevention & management of violence and aggression) training for Groups and Organisations.

Our PMVA training is BILD ACT certified and aligned with the Restraint Reduction Network Training Standards, supporting NHS teams to develop confident, compassionate and lawful responses to behaviour that challenges.

Call us on 01473 927 333

or email [email protected]

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