A free user-friendly toolkit to help develop a whole school allergy awareness policy…
At a glance
- Reflects European Academy of Allergy and Clinical Immunology (EAACI) guidance on supporting pupils with allergic conditions
- Offers official guidelines, action plans, policy tools, articles and useful resources for the whole school
- Case studies learning channel showcases good practice
- Includes completion certificates
Do you have a whole-school allergy awareness policy in place? Do you have a named person responsible for development of management plans for individual children?
The need for age-specific, whole school, allergy-aware management policies is crucial, and has to go far beyond simply banning food allergens, such as nuts.
All secondary schools should therefore consider this downloadable, seven-step toolkit hosted by Allergy UK, a multi-agency informed programme that fosters good practice, risk awareness, and management of emergencies.
Based on European and UK clinical guidelines, this unique package is full of practical policies to help schools embed an allergy awareness culture within their communities.
Secondary schools can download the toolkit and work through the seven steps at their own pace, with a completion certificate after each stage.
To get started there are questionnaires which shine a light on current practice and policies, and an ice breaker card activity with a comprehensive task list of items needed for holding a preliminary meeting about allergy awareness.
The toolkit then challenges us to consider whether a nut ban helps, and how schools can help empower students to make informed choices for themselves for life in the real world.
It also talks about the importance of time management when treating anaphylaxis, and prompts schools to compare current food allergy management practice in relation to clinical guidelines, and consider how to raise awareness of food allergy for all stakeholders.
A template is provided for drafting your own Whole School Allergy Awareness and Practical Management Policy and Action Plan with next steps advice, review progress pointers and ideas for tackling new food issues as they arise.
There is a variety of supporting resources available, too, including articles, fascinating Factsheets, allergy recipes and resources for caterers, and you can also sign up for allergy alerts.
This toolkit will have tremendous impact and ensure all young people with allergies have the support needed to achieve, and stay safe, in school.
It gets everyone involved and asking the right questions so that these students are fully integrated into daily life and schools are actively engaged in keeping their allergy knowledge up to date.
Verdict
- Raises awareness and helps staff recognise the onset of an allergic reaction, including anaphylaxis, and know how and when to get help
- Intelligently feeds into personalised emergency management plans
- Helps dispel misconceptions, myths and misinformation, and tackles bullying
- Promotes an ‘adolescent-centered’ self-management approach for students
Upgrade if…
You are looking for a comprehensive, practical and empowering educational programme that will dramatically transform your approach, protocols and direction for keeping students safe and healthy.
For more information head to allergyuk.org or email Schools@allergyuk.org.
Reviewed by John Dabell
