School governors to be accountable for health support policies

From September, governing bodies will be required to ensure that children with medical conditions, such as diabetes and epilepsy, are able to fully access education, including school trips and sport.

They must also ensure that a school's policies are sufficient to meet the needs of all pupils and that any support needed is actually put in place.

In addition, governing bodies will be required to monitor children’s individual healthcare plans, ensuring they are reviewed regularly and meet the child’s needs.

The measures are contained in statutory guidance, published this week, designed to improve the educational experiences of children with medical conditions.

The guidance supports a clause in the Children and Families Act 2014 that requires governing bodies to become more accountable for supporting children with long-term medical issues.

Russell Hobby, general secretary of the National Association of Head Teachers (NAHT), said the publication of the guidance will allay the concerns of parents who worry about their child’s wellbeing during school hours.

However, he is concerned about how the measures will be implemented.

He said: “We foresee three main logistical issues with the guidance, the foremost being the timescale of implementation in the context of the raft of other changes schools are obliged to implement.

“Staff will need to be trained to cope with particular conditions and head teachers will now need to ensure that the required individual pupil healthcare plans are in place.

“The second concern is that school leaders may be faced with a situation where none of their staff volunteer for extra medical responsibility when it comes to invasive administration of medicines.

“The guidance relies heavily on governors writing policies and on free access to the school nursing service – however, the feedback from our members suggests that there are regional variations in availability of support from the school nursing service.”