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Stoke Primary School Allergies policy |
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Section 34 of the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Act 2026 requires that LA-maintained schools, academies and PRUs must have an allergy safety policy.
Policies can be reviewed more frequently, particularly where incidents or “near misses” suggest areas for improvement. Any review should take account of any incidents and “near misses” and should seek to learn lessons from them. All staff have been trained in allergy awareness and emergency response. This will be completed annually. New Staff will complete the training before employment commences Welcome to Allergy School, Teaching Children About Food Allergies
They will:
Training under this guidance should be understood as allergy awareness and emergency response training. It should not be read as replacing any separate clinical governance, competency or delegation arrangements that may be needed where a child or young person requires individual healthcare support beyond school-level allergy safety arrangements.
Well being The school will promote the wellbeing of children with allergies by providing appropriate support, addressing anxiety and concerns and taking a zero-tolerance approach to bullying or discrimination related to allergy.
Minimising risk and food allergy The school will take reasonable steps to minimise the risk of children, young people, staff and visitors coming into contact with known allergens. This will include:
Staff will follow the child or young person’s Individual Healthcare Plan and Allergy Action Plan where applicable, and any agreed reasonable adjustments will be implemented to reduce the risk of exposure.
Individual children and young people Identification For all new children starting at the school, information about allergies and dietary requirements will be collected through the starter form completed during the admissions process.
Once the information has been entered onto the MIS system, administration staff will inform the Family Team. The Family Team will contact the family to develop a Healthcare Plan (HCP) and, where necessary, contact the child’s GP surgery or healthcare professional for further information. The Family Team will share the completed HCP with relevant staff, including teachers, the Headteacher, SLT, catering staff and office staff. Children joining the school during the academic year will follow the same process, with the starter form completed during the admissions meeting and the allergy recorded on the MIS system. Children with an allergy will be given a red lanyard which includes their allergy, photograph and indicates whether they carry medication. They will also be given a red tray. Children who attend breakfast club who have an allergy / intolerance will be given a red lanyard.
Children with dietary requirements that are not allergy-related, such as no pork, will be given a yellow lanyard.
Prescribed Adrenaline Devices The school will ensure that children who are prescribed adrenaline devices always have rapid and easy access to their medication. In cases of anaphylaxis, adrenaline should be administered within five minutes. Adrenaline devices must be readily accessible during lessons, at lunchtime, in the playground, on sports fields and during educational visits, trips and other activities away from the school. Parents/carers and children or young people will be responsible for taking individually prescribed adrenaline devices home at the end of the school day, where appropriate, including for the journey home. The school will remind parents/carers to ensure devices remain in date and are replaced before expiry. The school will maintain an up-to-date record of children and young people who have been prescribed adrenaline devices, together with their Allergy Action Plan. Relevant staff will be informed of the location of medication and the emergency procedures to follow.
Visits and trips All children with allergies will take their own medication with them and school will provide spare epi pens in first aid trip bags which will be picked up from the office signed in and out The school will ensure that children with allergies are able to participate safely in all educational visits, trips and activities away from the school premises. A risk assessment will be completed for any child at risk of anaphylaxis before a trip. This will identify potential allergy risks and the reasonable adjustments and arrangements required to keep the child safe.
Children at risk of anaphylaxis must always have their prescribed adrenaline device(s) with them while on a visit or trip. Staff accompanying the child will be aware of their Allergy Action Plan and emergency procedures.
At least one member of staff accompanying the child will be appropriately trained and/or confident in recognising anaphylaxis and administering adrenaline in an emergency. Any additional arrangements identified through the risk assessment will be communicated to relevant staff and put in place before the visit takes place. The school will provide spare adrenaline auto-injectors (EpiPens) in first aid trip bags. These bags must be collected from the school office before departure and signed out and returned to the office and signed back in following the trip.
Serious Incidents and Near Misses The school will record, report and respond to all serious incidents and near misses relating to allergy safety. All allergy-related incidents and near misses will be recorded on CPOMS and in the relevant first aid book. Parents/carers will be informed where appropriate. Children and young people, parents/carers and healthcare professionals can report an allergy incident that may not have been recognised at the time, including where symptoms become apparent after the child or young person has returned home. All serious incidents and near misses will be reviewed to identify any learning, changes to risk assessments, Individual Healthcare Plans or allergy procedures that may be required to prevent a recurrence.
Information Sharing The school will ensure that relevant information about children with allergies is shared with staff who need to know in order to keep them safe and provide appropriate support. Allergy and health information will be treated as confidential and sensitive information and handled in accordance with the school’s data protection and confidentiality policies. Information will only be shared where there is a legitimate need to do so, such as ensuring staff are aware of a child allergy, Individual Healthcare Plan, medication and emergency arrangements. Information will be shared in a discreet and respectful manner, taking account of the child wishes and avoiding unnecessary disclosure or singling them out.
Awareness of the Allergy Safety Policy The school will ensure that the Allergy Safety Policy is available on the school website and is accessible to parents, carers, staff and other relevant members of the school community. All staff will be made aware of the policy and their responsibilities through annual allergy awareness training and appropriate induction for new staff. The school will promote awareness of allergy safety among children in an age-appropriate and sensitive way. Where appropriate, and with the agreement of the child or young person and their parent/carer, friends may be given information about how to seek help in an emergency. Any awareness-raising with children and young people will not replace the school’s staff emergency response arrangements.
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