Allergies Understanding allergies
Greater teacher awareness and communication with parents is needed if children with allergies are to thrive. Maria Anguita looks at how schools can make a difference
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p to 40 per cent of all children are affected by allergies including asthma, eczema, hay fever, and food allergies, according to Allergy UK. On average, there are two children with asthma in
every classroom, and one in eight schoolchildren are affected by eczema. Although, asthma, eczema and hay fever are among the most common
chronic diseases in childhood, only 30 per cent of parents feel that their child’s teacher understands their child’s allergy, and only 65 per cent of parents are confident that their child’s PE teacher will know what to do in the event of their child suffering an asthma attack, according to a survey by Allergy UK. Up to 47 per cent of children with allergies have reported being excluded from activities that their non-allergic peers would regard as commonplace activities, and up to third of children with asthma say that their condition has led them to being left out of sports activities in schools.
Emotional and intellectual consequences Despite asthma rates doubling and the incidence of eczema tripling since the 1970s, there is no specific legal duty on school staff to manage a pupil’s medicine or support a child’s medical needs, and very little consideration is given to the impact of allergies on school performance. This prompted the Health Conditions in Schools Alliance to call for schools to have a statutory duty to produce and implement a medical conditions policy and to train staff adequately. For many children with allergies the emotional and intellectual
consequences of having an allergy can be just as debilitating as the physical symptoms, and can lead to poor academic performance. Children who are excluded from sports and classroom activities, or
who are made to sit apart at mealtimes owing to their food allergy, can feel isolated and can sometimes be the victims of stigmatisation and bullying, according to the Anaphylaxis Campaign. For eczema sufferers, chronic night-time itching can severely reduce
the amount of hours slept, hampering their ability to concentrate at school and how they interact with their peers. Blossom, an offshoot of Allergy UK, explains that children with eczema can be distressed and distracted by how their affected skin looks – which can be red and scaly, sometimes blistered and weeping – which in some cases can also be a cause for bullying. Emily Humphreys, policy and public affairs manager at Asthma
UK, points out that a fifth of adults with asthma believe that their condition has held them back academically. The Department for Education (DfE) admits that asthma is not just limited to a health issue as it can result in tiredness, poor performance, increased absenteeism, anxiety and stress.
Teacher awareness Education experts believe that it is important that teachers learn not only how to manage a medical emergency, but to also recognise that allergies have an emotional impact and this may affect how the child performs at school. Pascale Mather, child and
educational psychologist at Southwark Council, London, feels that: “Increasing awareness and educating teachers on the effects and impa c t of allergies is essential so that they can
32 Impact on school performance
Children with allergies, asthma and eczema are often affected by one or more of the following:
n Isolation. n Tiredness. n Poor performance. n Self-consciousness. n Distraction. n Lack of motivation.
n Anxiety. n Stress. n Lack of concentration. n Bullying. n Poor self-image. n Poor self-confidence.
understand how distracting [allergies] are”. She adds: “Sometimes very simple changes at classroom level can make a very big difference to how a child with allergies feels about themselves.” Emily Humphreys explains that they receive anecdotal evidence of
teachers locking up inhalers, putting them out of children’s reach during asthma attacks, and even a case of a child being labelled a “liability” by a teacher. However she reminds teachers that they have a duty of care to the children in school and that it is important for children to be able to access their emergency medicines when they needs them. Campaigners agree that the current situation is not good enough and
that there is no consistency in staff training. A spokesperson for Blossom explains that children are being excluded from certain activities because adequate structures are not in place, and they would like to see schools making more effort and training teachers in providing an environment where childhood allergy sufferers can thrive and participate in as many activities as possible. However, there are those who think that a blanket policy
will not be effective as this may mean that childrens’ individual needs will not be met. Lesley Gannon, head of campaigns at the National Association for Head Teachers, believes that the best way forward is for headteachers to have a thorough knowledge of the
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