Calm lockdowns in SEND settings: planning for every pupil

In a special school, the alarm itself can become the emergency. A siren that sends one pupil under a table and another towards the door makes a lockdown harder, not safer. The guidance leaves plenty of room for a quieter, planned approach.

This guide covers what the guidance asks of SEND settings, how to plan for each pupil, and how to practise without causing distress.

What the guidance asks

Special schools and SEND units expecting 200 or more people on site, including staff, have the same Martyn's Law duties as any other school: procedures for evacuation, invacuation, lockdown and communication. There is no separate DfE guidance on lockdowns in SEND settings, but three points in the wider guidance matter most.

• Plans for individuals. ProtectUK recommends personalised plans for staff and visitors with disabilities in a non-fire emergency.
• Alerts everyone can perceive. ProtectUK says alarms must be heard, seen or otherwise perceived by everyone.
• Quiet where possible. The DfE's lockdown template advises silent communication wherever possible when an intruder may be close.

The DfE's emergency planning guidance also notes that some pupils with SEND may need specific help adjusting to changes in routine.

Plan for each pupil, not just the building

Many schools already have a personal emergency evacuation plan for pupils who need help in a fire. Some extend the same plan to lockdown and invacuation. For each pupil who needs one, set out:

• Where they go, and the calmest route there.
• Who stays with them, and who covers if that adult is elsewhere.
• What helps them stay calm: ear defenders, a familiar object, a quiet corner, a favourite activity.
• How to communicate with them: symbols, signs or a few simple words.
• What they need if it goes on: medication, food, drink and toileting.

Share each plan with parents, and review it whenever a pupil's needs change.

Prepare pupils without frightening them

• Start with staff-only drills. The DfE's protective security guidance notes that drills involving younger pupils are relatively uncommon. Walk staff through it first.
• Tell pupils what to expect. The National Autistic Society suggests preparing people for unexpected noise, such as alarms. Social stories and visual timetables can show what "staying safe inside" looks like.
• Build up gently. Fire service advice for autistic children suggests playing an alarm quietly at first and raising the volume over weeks. The same patience works for lockdown practice.
• Keep instructions short. One instruction at a time, said slowly and calmly.
• Practise in different places, at different times, and talk it through afterwards.

Choose a signal that doesn't escalate

If every adult can be told without a sound, the room stays calm while staff act. That is why a silent alert to staff devices, with instructions kept off classroom screens, suits SEND settings so well. If you also use an audible signal, make it different from the fire alarm and prepare pupils for it in advance.

During and after

• Account for everyone. Staff confirm they're safe, and say straight away if a pupil is missing.
• Plan for a long wait. Medication, food, drink and toileting can matter within the hour.
• End it calmly. Give the all clear to staff first, so they can lead pupils back into routine.
• Debrief with pupils and parents, and update each pupil's plan with what you learned.

How teamSOS helps

In teamSOS, announcements can go out silently to staff devices only, with no sirens or tannoys. On classroom screens, instructions stay hidden until an adult presses View. Staff reply I'M OK or I'M NOT OK in one tap, and anyone NOT OK can say why, so leaders send support where it's needed. See teamSOS in SEND and special schools.

Sources: Martyn's Law statutory guidance (Home Office, updated 25 August 2026); ProtectUK on evacuation, invacuation and lockdown; DfE lockdown template; Protective security and preparedness for education settings (DfE, April 2025); DfE emergency planning guidance (updated May 2023); National Autistic Society on sensory differences; East Sussex Fire and Rescue fire safety advice for autistic children and adults.