A rant about child protection policies...

[Roseylea]

and my dd with severe excema (nearly 5 y o). The teachers in her school will not put cream on her as it is classed as 'inappropriate touching'.

So I got a phone call at work today saying that she wouldn't stop scratching and her tummy was all bleeding, and every time she stood up or sat down her botttom hurted like mad. She is hating being creamed atm, and runs away screaming when she sees me with a cream pot in my hand at home.

The 'arrangement' for dd is that she goe to the medical room, unsupervised, and creams herself just before lunchtime at school. But really, she is only still little, and something she hates at home...she's hardly going to cream herself at school, is she?

Which left me saying to the teacher on the phone that short of me leaving work for the day and going into the school to cream her myself, there's nothing that can be done for her. And if I had to do that every day I'd have to give up work.

How utterly crap, eh?

If she had any other medical condition I am sure that provision would be made for it...why is it that excema is not tken seriously? Why is it that the chlid protection policy is the very thing that stops my dd from being looked after?

Don't even get me started on suncream, severe excema and child protection policies...

Those are good ideas, Edam. Thanks for that!

Thanks for the link Jacanne.

Wisteria - madness! Utterly bonkers. Maybe I'll become a journalist and write for the Daily Mail...or go on Good Morning and tell my woeful tale! (sorry, sensible thought has gone out of the window! You can tell it's been a stressful day when I start spouting gibberish!)

If I'd picked my daughter up from school bleeding like that then believe me there would have been no rationale in me whatsoever!! I think you are being remarkably sensible. If there is no other way and the school refuses to change their policies, then is there a friendly Mum who is a bit closer and could go in on your behalf? I know that that doesn't solve the actual issue here but I'm just thinking of your dd.
By the way I think an article or an appearance on a morning show would be very sensible - these ridiculous rules need to be sorted out before the children grow up scared of their own shadow and ridiculously mollycoddled!! Rant over

This is so stupid, it needs some joinrd up thinking.

I think you should contact LEA for guidance, a teacher is "loco parentis" although this doesn't mean they have to administer medical help.

Also disabled children have to be accomodated at school. In our school they are co-ordinated by SENCO, as their disability can affect their learning. I think your daughter's condition (or disability) is affecting her, and how are the school addressing this?

Speak to consultant and ask him to raise the issue at nationwide eczema meetings, write to school and LEA.

Juat a thought Rosey, your local PCT will have a named link for Child Protection - you may be able to discuss the issue with her, including the schools interpretation of the whole issue.

My colleague I sit next to at work is our CP link so will ask her for advice too and let you know.

Might be worth mentioning this to your local councillor - along the lines of the Gov paper "every child matters" and the school clearly not making provision for your dd and her condition. Amazing how a letter to the House of Commons spurs a public sector into action!!! (I speak from being on the receiving end of such a letter - it certainly makes the big wigs find a solution to what was thought an impossible problem!)

this sort of thing really annoys me. At a professional nursery you sign a disclaimer allowing them to treat and they do it - what is so precious about teachers?

I think you should try and get a statement and 1 to 1 help at school for your daughter because she has special behavioural needs ( not wishing to apply the cream) that prevent her accessing the curriculum. If they have teaching assistants at the school you may find they are more amenable to helping than teachers.

Writing to the MP may help as may suggesting that you will have to keep the child home ( could she stay a few days with relatives?) if her needs can't be met at school. The suggestion that their unauthorised absence figures might increase can work wonders too!

Message withdrawn

I would second the MP suggestion, mine was marvellous at getting peanuts removed from ds's preschool.

I think that you need to work with the GP and the school and your daughter - at nearly 4 she is capable of creaming herself physically - but emotionally she isn't. So actually she needs emotional support - which wouldn't involve touching and crucially the teacher could still be in the room.

Message withdrawn

Rosey - does dd take antihistimine for the itching? Just a thought as DS takes piriton and was prescribed something else (?) to help with the scratching.

DS gets very itchy at school.

Hi again Rosey

spoke to my colleague at work, and although we are in Notts this should apply equally in Herts.
Teaching assistants can be trained to apply creams etc so can't see why they won't do this. However, may be your schools interpretation of CP issues?

Crazy isn't it - anyone would think you were asking them to perform life threatening interventions on your dd!!

Thank you for those messages.

Podmog, your dd's excema sounds similar to my dd's. I was creaming her at 1.30 a.m. [matchsticks holding eyelids open emoticon needed for me today!!!!] She is very ratty atm but I think it's beacuse she is tired and fed up.

I need to get my head round this properly. I know that I am an articulate person so I can write letters to MPs etc. I hadn't tought of applying for a statement for her. In all honesty I don't think that the teachers are that supportive of her excema. They tried to persuade me that it would be better for dd not to have cream applied, by herself or anyone else, during the school day as it would 'mark her out as different'. So her sitting there all afternoon scratching until she bleeds makes her blend in, eh?

I nipped out of work today, drove across town, to cream her. I'm not sure if I cuold get away with that every dsay I work though...

Pimmpom - yes, Piriton etc work a bit but they only really take the edge off it.

crazy. We had all sorts of problems when ds1 was in mainstream school with toiletting issues. Thank god he;s now in a special school. There are policies put in place to protect staff ad children but they actually seem to use common sense.

Sympathies- ds1 used to have severe eczema. Could you wet wrap her or something before school??? Hmm maybe not- but agree is daft.

ooh sounds awful- I am sorry for this its rubbish

can assure you that other medical conditions dont get better treatment- the system is shit from start to finish.

Ok

so- is there a parent liaison person at the LEA? If so peak to them, they often masquerade under the tile of aprent partnership

Just because she doesn't have learning difficulties, she has got special needs so it can be addressed. You'll hage to fight but it should be do-able as her health is at risk (eg if she got a serious infection- my cousins child had to spens months in hospital after that happened)

IPSEA are a fabulous gropup (they ahve a website buta re notoriously ahrd to get through to on the phone sadly).

I would start with the LEA tbh, say youa re consideringa statement- amazing what some LEA's will do to avoid that!

Roseylea
Strongly suggest you contact the National Eczema Society helpline. They have a lot of experience in this type of thing and I'm sure will have some good suggestions.

roseylea - I would be very interested to hear how it is going because my two dds suffered very badly with eczema. Wet wrapping really sorted them out though and the condition is under control now although they do get flare ups which we manage with propaderm and other prescription creams. Also , are you getting aveeno emmolient prescription? it is a very good one but pricey. How did it go with the consultant?

Rosy, I just had to add my voice to the others who say how awful this is.

The thought of your poor little FOUR year old dd being expected to cream herself for excema at school just brings tears to my eyes - how ridiculous.

I would certainly approach the LEA for advice. Quote every child matters at them - there are at least 3 categories I can see there that she is being prevented from acheiving in!

As a desperate last resort while this situation is so acute, could you pay a childminder to go in and do it?

oops I certainly did not mean to imply that childminders are a desperate last resort! only that it would be a very unusual thing to have to do, pay someone to go in for half an hour to a school!