Posted By Zoe Barnett You should refer to the DfES booklet "Supporting Students with Medical Needs" which will answer most of your questions. You can get it free from the DfES (www.dfes.gov.uk) Your liability insurance should cover staff carrying out medication duties as long as they have been properly trained and are acting in accordance with instructions. It is also vey useful to draw up an individual care plan with the parents and, where they are old enough, the child themselves. This should include things like what medication is needed, what emergencies can arise, and who has been trained to work with that child. Care plans should also set out things like who is responsible for ensuring the medication is up to date (ie not past its use-by date) and who is responsible for replenishing supplies. Lastly a good medication policy is a must and should be agreed with staff and parents. Hope this helps Zoe

Posted By Ken Taylor Nurses can be very useful in this respect. A strict non-medication policy could prevent some anaphylactic students from attending who will require the emergency use of an Epipen. Would this be unreasonable discrimination?