AIBU to complain after my child ate poisonous items at school twice?

I really can't decide whether you really consider this a helpful suggestion or are just deliberately being antagonistic. You really think the answer to dealing with a child who is prone to eating potentially dangerous or toxic non edible items is to basically put them in a gimp mask. Please save yourself the trouble of inventing this " comfortable, decorative, fun mask " as restricting access to a child's mouth by way of a mask is always going to be child abuse.

I worded it wrongly i appreciate you cant eliminate all risk i have pleanty of experience of glitter 💩 so know it happens
But acvording too the Op hes eaten something twice so not just a little taste or mouthful if hes mansged to eat something why hsvent staff realised ?

continuous 1-1 (which is never going to happen on the back of just tasting a bulb and a mushroom

I disagree. OP may have to appeal to get it detailed, specified and quantified in F, but it is possible. I have supported others to secure full time 1:1 where there has only been one incident in school or none but with the risks related to the DC known about (and evidenced). I have supported others, those whose DC only need 1:1 at certain times rather than full-time 1:1, to secure 1:1 for all times the child is outside or high risk items inside too.

I asked because I thought I had seen you post about your own children before (but I can’t trust my memory) which is why I was quite surprised that you think the school can say that a child will never get close to inedible items or can guarantee close enough supervision when the child doesn’t have funding for 1-1.

Your comments were unrealistic, and therefore unhelpful for the OP who needs to be able to work with the school and trust what they say.

Err yes i have a severley autistic teen who goes to a special school for children with severe and profound learning disabillities
Of vourse you cant eliminate all risks but
But this school told the Op he ate something poisonous clearly he wssent being supervised properly.

Do you have experience of PICA?

Preventing a child from getting close to inedible items would mean keeping them in a bare cell and in some kind of outfit that completely removed their bodily autonomy so they can’t reach their own poo.

In reality, needs have to be balanced and the only answer is an environment that is as safe as possible and close supervision. But even in a special school, with well trained staff and funding for continuous 1-1 (which is never going to happen on the back of just tasting a bulb and a mushroom), schools can’t guarantee that children will never have access to anything inedible. Risks can be reduced but they can’t be completely eliminated.

Just because OP’s DS was OK after eating it doesn’t necessarily mean it wasn’t poisonous. With some poisonous items, some people can eat a small amount and be OK - that doesn’t make it not a poisonous item.

It was the school who said it was poisonous in the first instance
But yes i take your point.

And??
The fact is hes not being closely supervised
It might not be poisonous this time but they need to gurantee it wont happen again.

Wether its pisonous or not he shouldnt be getting that close to inedible items
The staff need to supervise better.

The said he ate fungi
Why have you decided that happen?

How is it fact you were not there!

Thats not the point
Its a special schoool they know some students have pica .

That's true but I'd hate to minimise the risk of future events with survivor bias.

The chances are it is a non-poisonous bulbing/egging type of mushroom and it is the same kind both times, but there are many of our local mushrooms, especially within the amanita family that "bulb" and in their bulbous state, you can't tell if it is an edible amanita or an inedible amanita. So although the risks appear small, they're never 0.

The bulbs also look like eggs. For a lot of kids this is interesting and the adults don't necessarily know what they're looking out for.

Then we also have puffball varieties of mushroom which are edible and they also look like eggs when young or a smaller variety.

On top of that we have stinkhorn mushrooms which once they'd burst open from their bulbs, you'd be able to tell what they are due to each of their distinctive smells and shapes, but some people collect them in their egg form as a delicacy.

I just want to add this to reassure the OP that not all "bulb" mushrooms are poisonous, but it is still a risk that needs bringing forward and if the school do not have access to a mycologist every time an unidentifiable mushroom with or without a bulb emerges, they should use the information they already have as data for supporting a 1:1 at unstructured times if it is not reasonable to seclude the area or if it will impact other children to do so.

Have they confirmed the fungi are poisonous or have they said they can't confirm whether or not they're poisonous. Either way I would expect them to ring 999 immediately for poison control advice and then to contact you.

In the UK we do have some "bulbing" mushrooms that are poisonous but we have many more that aren't and the bulb is just part of the fruiting body and not actually the whole mushroom, theres an entire mycelial network underground. It can make it really hard to get rid of them.

They could inspect the area regularly and use fungicide but it isn't guaranteed to stop them growing, some of them are remarkably fast. It's not realistic to expect them to get 100% of the mycelial network as it's underground.

Does he have an EHCP that offers 1:1 even at unstructured times like playtime and dinner time? It sounds like he may need this putting formally in place and the school have now got 2 instances of evidence where it could have ended potentially life threatening.