121. Don't send them if they have a health problem.

121. Don’t send them if they have a health problem

School is not a pleasant or safe place for children with certain health problems. A diabetes support group I know of has many stories of diabetic youngsters, realising they are going ‘hypo’ (having blood sugar lows after insulin injection or medication) in school, who become aware of feeling very ill and become fearful they are going into a coma, but are unable to do anything about it. In a class of 30, the teacher often does not notice. Many parents of diabetic youngsters have removed them from school to keep them safe.

Other conditions, from epilepsy to allergies are better managed, particularly in very young children when a concerned parent is able to keep an eye. I am not in favour of wrapping children in cotton wool but question the safety of sending six-year-olds with life-threatening allergy to nuts into an uncontrolled school environment with maybe one member of staff trained to inject adrenaline in an emergency. Apart from the fear and anxiety this adds to the child’s life, there is much more danger of not getting there quickly enough.

Some schools have banned sunscreen, because some children are seriously allergic to some components of it, so other children risk sunburn at break times. Those with immune deficiencies, exacerbated by the stress in school, are exposed to a high and random number of infections in school. Proneness to urinary tract infections and constipation is not helped when school toilets are so awful. (see 102. Toilets) Those with hyper-flexible joints suffer from enforced sitting for prolonged periods.


Add: asthmatics and find data on increase in asthma attacks when children return to school in the autumn - I heard it on radio 4)