Legal requirements for schools and caterers

Our statutory guidance explains your responsibilities in supporting students at school with medical conditions. You should make sure that you support students with any medical conditions in school. This could include ensuring that a child with an allergy is able to eat a school lunch.

Nut-Free Policy

Although we recognise that this cannot be guaranteed, Everest International, Tangier,aims to be a Nut-Free school so far as is reasonably practicable. This policy serves to set out all measures to reduce the risk to those children and adults who may suffer an anaphylactic reaction if exposed to nuts to which they are sensitive.
The School aims to protect children who have allergies to nuts yet also help them, as they grow up, to take responsibility as to what foods they can eat and to be aware of where they may be put at risk. We do not allow nuts or nut products in school lunch boxes.
Our “Nut-Free Policy” means that the following items should not be brought into school:

• Packs of nuts
• Peanut butter sandwiches
• Fruit and cereal bars that contain nuts
• Chocolate bars or sweets that contain nuts
• Sesame seed rolls (children allergic to nuts may also have a severe reaction to sesame)
• Cakes made with nuts

We have a policy to not use nuts in any of our food prepared on site at our school. Our suppliers provide us with nut-free products. However, we cannot guarantee freedom from nut traces. We cannot give out any foodstuffs brought in from home to be given out as birthday treats.

Definition

Anaphylaxis (also known as anaphylactic shock) is an allergic condition that can be severe and potentially fatal.
Anaphylaxis is your body’s immune system reacting badly to a substance (an allergen), such as food, which it wrongly perceives as a threat. The whole body can be affected, usually within minutes of contact with an allergen, although sometimes the reaction can happen hours later.

Staff

Staff and volunteers must ensure they do not bring in or consume nut products in school and ensure they follow good hand washing practice.
All product packaging to be checked for warnings directed at nut allergy sufferers. It must clearly identify the food contents and ingredients to help identify which food students with allergies can and cannot eat. If the following or similar are displayed on packaging, the product must not be used in school:

• Not suitable for nut allergy sufferers;
• This product contains nuts;
• This product may contain traces of nuts;
• Indicating this is unsuitable for school consumption.

Parents and Guardians

Parents and carers must notify staff of any known or suspected allergy to nuts and provide all medical and necessary information. This will be added to the child’s care plan and if necessary a meeting organised with the school nurse. Homemade snacks or party food contributions must have a label detailing all ingredients present and the kitchen environment where the food was prepared must be nut free. If you are unsure about a selection please speak to a staff member before bringing the food item into school. The school requests that parents and carers observe the nut-free policy and therefore do not include nuts, or any traces of nuts, in packed lunches.

Children

All children are regularly reminded about the good hygiene practice of washing hands before and after eating which helps to reduce the risk of secondary contamination. Likewise, children are reminded and carefully supervised to minimise the act of food sharing with their friends.

Health Plans and Emergency Response

We have individual Healthcare plans for children with allergies and Allergy Lists are displayed highlighting Healthcare plans in place, triggers, medication (Medication will be stored, administered and documented in accordance with our Medical and First Aid Provision Policy).

Symptoms

The symptoms of anaphylaxis may be immediate or delayed after contact with the allergen. Less commonly symptoms can occur a few hours or even days after contact.
An anaphylactic reaction may lead to feeling unwell or dizzy or may cause fainting due to a sudden drop in blood pressure.
Narrowing of the airways can also occur at the same time, with or without the drop in blood pressure. This can cause breathing difficulties and wheezing.

Other symptoms:

• Swelling of the eyes, lips and mouth (this is called angioedema)
• Itching
• Sore, red, itchy eyes
• Changes in heart rate
• A sudden feeling of extreme anxiety or apprehension
• Itchy skin or nettle-rash (hives)
• Unconsciousness due to very low blood pressure
• Abdominal cramps, vomiting or diarrhoea, or nausea and fever.

Anaphylaxis varies in severity. Sometimes it causes only mild itchiness and swelling, but in some people it can cause sudden death. If symptoms start soon after contact with the allergen and rapidly worsens, this indicates that the reaction is more severe.

Legal (U.K.) framework:

• The Human Medicines Regulations (2012)
• The Children and Families Act 2014 states that schools have a duty to support pupils at their school withnmedical conditions
• The Food Information Regulations 2014 requires all food businesses including school caterers to show
  the allergen ingredients’ information for the food they provide