My child is unwell. How long should they stay off school?

At St George's, we want every child to have excellent attendance. However, there are times when a child is unwell and needs time off school to recover. Please see the chart below which gives NHS guidance on common illnesses in children and if they should stay home and for how long. 

If your child is too ill to attend school please contact the school as soon as possible by phone, 01702 293522, or email office@st-georges.southend.sch.uk

What do I do if my child is ill during the school day or needs medication?

Illness during the day

Should your child become ill during the day we will contact you and ask you (or the person named on the emergency number) to collect your child. It is important that, should a child be ill, there is somewhere he/she can go and they are picked up immediately. We do not have facilities or staff to take care of an ill child in school for long periods.

Return to school after illness

All illnesses should be reported on the first day. If we do not hear from you, we will text you in the first instance to find out why your child is not at school. When your child returns to school after an illness please send in an email/letter with information as to why your child was off. Children who have been away due to sickness and/or diarrhoea can only return to school 48 hours after their last bout of stomach upset. This is in line with NHS guidance.

Medicine

Children are not allowed to bring medicine to school. There may be times when medicine may need to be administered by the parent or the parent’s appointed representative during the school day and we can accommodate this. In exceptional circumstances parents may ask if medication can be administered by school staff. When this is the case a Medical Request Form, detailing administration and dosage, must be completed and signed. The medication should be clearly named with a pharmacist prescription label and it is the parent’s responsibility to collect the medicine at the end of each day. Some children will be asthmatic or have other conditions that require regular treatment. If this is the case you are requested to provide a supply of medication to be kept at school.

For children in need of regular medication or those who may need emergency treatment (e.g. severe allergies) the school will have access to an Individual Health Care Plan, agreed in conjunction with the parents and health professionals.

Please inform the school if your child has a serious recurring medical problem. Please ensure that you keep the office up to date on any health matters, especially allergies which relate to your child.

It is the parent’s responsibility to note expiry dates of medication sent in to school and replace when necessary.

First Aid

All members of staff, who are with the children daily, have a qualification in Paediatric First Aid. All staff receive annual anaphylaxis training.

Basic First Aid is given to children when necessary and a text giving details will be sent to the parent’s mobile phone on that day. If your child has an allergy to plasters please send in your own alternative dressings.

If a child is injured whilst in school, the injury is recorded on CPOMS, the school’s online reporting platform. If it is considered to be of a serious nature, it will be reported to the Head Teacher. Normally the injury will be dealt with in school.

If an accident should happen which requires hospital treatment, we will contact you immediately. If you are unavailable, the emergency number given on the admission form will be tried. It is important that the person named to be contacted in an emergency understands that they may be called upon to take full responsibility for that child in case of accident or injury.

Should it not be possible to contact you or the emergency contact, a member of staff will accompany the child to the hospital BUT they cannot give consent for any treatment (e.g. stitches). They will however, stay with the child until the parent(s) arrive.

Emergency contact information

Please ensure that all information you provide is kept up-to-date in order for you to be contacted. This should include any health matters that may relate to your child.