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Hayes Park Public School P & C Association Policy on The Canteen and Children with Food Allergies
Rationale:
Our Canteen, staffed by volunteer parents /carers, provides healthy and nutritious food to our students. The food is sourced from local providers and is prepared according to food handling guidelines. Whilst every care is taken to only purchase healthy food, it is the responsibility of individual parents/carers to investigate ingredients if they have any concerns.
Some students, who have food allergies and/or are susceptible to an anaphylactic reaction, may wish to purchase from the canteen and these guidelines refer to how the canteen will deal with this situation. Under the current DEC [Department of Education & Communities] guidelines DEC employees are trained in dealing with anaphylactic situations, canteen volunteers are not expected to be trained.
Guidelines from ASCIA [Australian Society for Allergy and Clinical Immunology] and The Childrens' Hospital Westmead, state "Banning of foods or food products is not recommended. There is a lack of evidence to suggest that banning a food from a school is helpful in reducing the risk of anaphylaxis. Schools are encouraged to become aware of the risks associated with anaphylaxis and implement strategies to minimise exposure to known allergens." The school has asked families not to bring nuts or nut products to the school site or to school activities, it is impossible for the school to be considered "nut free". We encourage parents to educate their child/ren as to the danger of allergens.
Procedures:
- The school will provide a photo of each child who has been identified as susceptible to an anaphylactic reaction which will be placed in a prominent position in the canteen
- A list of food that the child can eat, provided by the parent/carers to the school, will also be placed in a prominent position in the canteen
- Each child who has been identified as susceptible to an anaphylactic reaction will wear a badge clearly identifying themselves to canteen volunteers and will only purchase from their approved list of foods.
These procedures are aimed at harm minimisation and Canteen volunteers are not responsible if a child has an anaphylactic response to a purchased product.
Volunteer Information (pdf 72 KB)