The life-saving new changes will come into effect following tireless campaigning from Helen and Peter Blythe, whose five-year-old son Benedict died from a fatal milk reaction in 2021
Life-saving allergy pens must be stocked in schools in case of emergencies from this September, new statutory guidance sets out on Monday.
The landmark measures include allergy training for teachers and an expectation for all schools to keep clear allergy policies and healthcare plans.
Ministers said the guidance will mean consistent, nationwide standards ensuring every school has the training, the plans and the adrenaline devices they need.
The changes are testament to the tireless campaigning of Helen and Peter Blythe, after the death of their son five-year-old Benedict, who died from a fatal anaphylactic reaction to cow’s milk at school in 2021.
Helen Blythe, co-Founder of the Benedict Blythe Foundation and Benedict’s mother, said: “This week marks a historic turning point for children with allergies and their families. For too long, whether a child was safe at school depended on where they happened to go.
“The publication of this guidance is the beginning of a new era for allergy safety. We are incredibly proud that Benedict’s legacy will help protect generations of children to come.”
Education Minister Olivia Bailey said: “Every child deserves to feel safe and included, but too many families have had to fight for basic protections that should simply be there.
“Today marks a significant moment for children with allergies and their families across the country – with Benedict’s Law making sure that every school has the training, plans and equipment needed to keep every child safe. This change is thanks to the tireless efforts of Helen and Peter Blythe, who have turned unimaginable tragedy into lasting change that will protect thousands of children for generations to come.”
Sarah Knight, chief executive of specialist organisation the Allergy Team, said: “As a parent of two school-aged children with allergies and co-founder of The Allergy Team, I know how much trust families place in schools every day. This guidance is an important step forward, giving schools greater clarity about how they can better protect children with allergies.”
Paul Whiteman, general secretary of school leaders’ union NAHT, welcomed the guidance but raised concerns about staffing capacity and funding issues.
He said expecting schools to stock ‘spare’ allergy pens – also known as adrenaline auto-injectors – is a “sensible step” but added: “However, the government needs to be confident that there are sufficient stocks maintained across the country to ensure each setting can keep a sufficient share of adrenaline auto-injectors.
“In addition to their safe storage and ease of access, schools will need processes for ensuring adrenaline auto-injectors are discarded safely and re-ordered when they expire, so this needs to be carefully managed by central government.
“If schools are ever in the situation where they cannot access adrenaline auto-injectors due to limited stock availability, it cannot be left to schools to source other suppliers – the government must do so and ensure only legitimate suppliers provide such resources to educational settings.”
The draft guidance was outlined in March before a consultation was launched.