The PBS Mindset: How Leadership Shapes Your Approach to Positive Behaviour Support
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In many services, Positive Behaviour Support (PBS) is treated as a care planning tool or risk framework — but at its heart, PBS is a leadership mindset.
The attitudes, behaviours, and priorities of senior leaders directly shape how PBS is understood and implemented throughout a service. And in tenders, CQC inspections, and day-to-day delivery, that mindset can make all the difference.
🌱 PBS Grows From the Top
Commissioners and regulators want to see that PBS is embedded — not surface-level. That starts with leaders who:
- Model respect and compassion in their own interactions
- Invest in regular, meaningful supervision that links to PBS values
- Support continuous learning and reflection, not just compliance
- Hold the line on reducing restrictive practice even when under pressure
When staff feel backed, trusted, and aligned with leadership values, PBS becomes a shared ethos — not a box-ticking exercise.
📢 Creating a Culture of Curiosity, Not Control
Great PBS starts with asking better questions:
- "What is this person trying to communicate?"
- "How have we contributed to this situation?"
- "What needs to change in the environment or support?"
These aren’t just questions for frontline staff. They need to be part of leadership conversations too — in governance meetings, case reviews, and service planning.
If your leadership team isn’t asking them, PBS will stay reactive, not proactive.
🧭 Supervision and PBS Go Hand-in-Hand
Supervision is one of the most powerful tools for embedding PBS culture. Use it to:
- Reflect on recent incidents through a PBS lens
- Explore emotional responses and team dynamics
- Encourage staff to suggest PBS-informed adjustments
- Spot patterns and training needs before they escalate
This shows commissioners you’re not just training staff in PBS — you’re supporting them to live it.
📈 Showing Leadership in Tenders
In social care tenders, leadership around PBS often gets overlooked. But it’s one of the clearest ways to show maturity, quality, and culture. Try including:
- How leadership roles actively promote PBS practice
- Oversight and learning from behaviour incidents
- Use of PBS outcomes in board reporting
- Examples of leadership modelling positive risk-taking
These don’t just improve your score — they improve your service.