diff --git a/packages/block-editor/src/components/writing-flow/use-tab-nav.js b/packages/block-editor/src/components/writing-flow/use-tab-nav.js
index bb1d22b2865de..558182b7b5ac4 100644
--- a/packages/block-editor/src/components/writing-flow/use-tab-nav.js
+++ b/packages/block-editor/src/components/writing-flow/use-tab-nav.js
@@ -116,17 +116,53 @@ export default function useTabNav() {
 				return;
 			}
 
+			// We want to constrain the tabbing to the block and its child blocks.
+			// If the preceding form element is within a different block,
+			// such as two sibling image blocks in the placeholder state,
+			// we want shift + tab from the first form element to move to the image
+			// block toolbar and not the previous image block's form element.
+			// TODO: Should this become a utility function?
+			/**
+			 * Determine whether an element is part of or is the selected block.
+			 *
+			 * @param {Object} selectedBlockElement
+			 * @param {Object} element
+			 * @return {boolean} Whether the element is part of or is the selected block.
+			 */
+			const isElementPartOfSelectedBlock = (
+				selectedBlockElement,
+				element
+			) => {
+				// Check if the element is or is within the selected block by finding the
+				// closest element with a data-block attribute and seeing if
+				// it matches our current selected block ID
+				const elementBlockId = element
+					.closest( '[data-block]' )
+					?.getAttribute( 'data-block' );
+				const isElementSameBlock =
+					elementBlockId === getSelectedBlockClientId();
+
+				// Check if the element is a child of the selected block. This could be a
+				// child block in a group or column block, etc.
+				const isElementChildOfBlock =
+					selectedBlockElement.contains( element );
+
+				return isElementSameBlock || isElementChildOfBlock;
+			};
+
+			const nextTabbable = focus.tabbable[ direction ]( event.target );
 			// Allow tabbing from the block wrapper to a form element,
-			// and between form elements rendered in a block,
+			// and between form elements rendered in a block and its child blocks,
 			// such as inside a placeholder. Form elements are generally
 			// meant to be UI rather than part of the content. Ideally
 			// these are not rendered in the content and perhaps in the
 			// future they can be rendered in an iframe or shadow DOM.
 			if (
-				( isFormElement( event.target ) ||
-					event.target.getAttribute( 'data-block' ) ===
-						getSelectedBlockClientId() ) &&
-				isFormElement( focus.tabbable[ direction ]( event.target ) )
+				isFormElement( nextTabbable ) &&
+				isElementPartOfSelectedBlock(
+					event.target.closest( '[data-block]' ),
+					nextTabbable
+				)
 			) {
 				return;
 			}