To think that kids with nits should be sent home

[JugglingNStruggling]

I don't know why kids aren't sent home if they have nits and prevented from coming back to school until their parents get rid of them
at the moment there seem to be a fair number of parents who don't seem to care if their child goes to school with nits and gives them to everybody in sight
I don't think there should be a stigma to catch nits, but there should be one if you keep coming to school and inflicting it on everybody else's kids
The school & other parents expect me to keep my kids at home if they are sick or have diarrhoea (not a notifiable disease) and I think this is quite reasonable and abide by this
The school and parents expect me not to give my kids peanut butter sandwiches in case somebody is allergic to nuts and I think this is quite reasonable and abide by this
Why can't this be extended to nits
Why do some parents seem to think that it is not unreasonable to inflict nits on everybody else

Bring back the nit nurse and ask parents for permission (at the start of year) to treat in school. That way the repeat the kid whose parents don't give a shit gets treated and stops infecting the whole class.

I do remember when I was in P. 7 the boy who sat next to me was infested. After the third time in a few weeks my mum requested I be moved to a different seat. Teacher explained to his mum that it was a real problem. She shaved his head and poured really hot water over him. He had bright red marks all over his scalp. Rather than go to the doctors for a free prescription.

I mean there's no point sending them home. One treatment alone doesn't sort it.

It's different from our day when they weren't so immune and the chemicals just sorted it.

Also no matter how well you do it, you won't get every egg even if you manage to get every live louse. Then they hatch and you start again .

Kids are sent home from my old primary school.

My daughter regularly got nits from nursery, and I used so many different treatments so often that they began not to work. After half a year, I gave up and just combed anything obvious out every couple of days.
Then treated her with chemicals when she left nursery, and have had them twice in the last two years since she left.

I also felt guilty for using the chemicals. I also spent a FORTUNE on these chemicals. Not only that, having a 2-4 year old that was verging on phobic at having their hair washed, with the added discomfort of a metal comb dragging over their scalp - you can imagine how well my evenings went.

I think it would make more sense for the school to tackle the problem when there is an outbreak, with everyone treated at exactly the same time. Would at least keep the numbers dwindled, and means the parents that don't care aren't an issue.

This annoyed me at dd's primary school. There were a few children who were forever having nits. Trouble is, so did the parents. And yes, they WERE scruffy people. One girl used to be absolutely crawling and i am sure she never ever had a bath or hair washed. Her hair was always in the same style and same bobbles etc. Teacher was ex child protection person (can't remember what its called now) and got in touch with people she knew at social services. Was told that nothing could be done unless any signs of neglect etc. She said it was neglect. Child had a younger sister and two younger brothers too and they were all filthy and crawling and still nothing. Dd told teacher herself that xxx had lice walking across her forehead. Funnily enough, a letter had been sent out previously saying that any child found to have nits will be asked to be collected from school and not sent back until hair treated and free from nits. When teacher told headmistress this she said there was nothing they could do?? Why send the letter? Dd at high school now and there are some there with nits. Again, both scruffy children. One girl with fuzzy hair that dd says you can see it moving and the lice everywhere.Same girl from another post where i said she has rotten black teeth. Dd has complained to community head. But yet again, parents scruffy.

Randomnumbers, thanks for that link

you are v welcome, honestly it's super effective

But it's not just scruffy children who have nits.....and often middle class parents have the "oh my children couldn't possibly have them" attitude....maybe the 'scruffy' families can't afford the expensive nit treatments...

I have always maintained that nit treatments should count as a free prescription for all children - that might help get rid of the little critters...

that it's always scruffy "others" that give nits to pristine mumsnet children!

A lot of children don't itch ( you have to be allergic to nits for them to make you itch) so you child might be spreading them and you'd never know!

One "treatment" isn't enough- so if you treat your child them send him back to school, 3 days later they could be spreading nits to others (even to "scruffy" children)

Holding DD2 down to comb her hair when she's not in the mood would have the SS after me. She knows it's pointless, her class just pass them round in circles with exceptions to and from older and younger siblings

But surely you still do it BuntingBunny?

Make mop caps part of primary school uniform :o

Mateymoo I am so with you it took me nearly a year to get rid of the blighters in my DS hair. It was our Friday night ritual and drove me bonkers and cost me £100s.

Im surprised to hear that some schools do send children home for nits nowadays. I thought that was Against The Rules. It's brilliant that some schools do it, I wish more would. It would force lazy parents into doing something about it instead of inflicting it on other people.

there is nothing wrong with catching them its a fact of life but imho its effectively neglect to not treat them. they are easy to treat if you actually comb out propally.
a child with a long standing infestation gets a sore head often wont sleep as well, can end up with a bleeding scalp untill such times as they become immune to the itch but by then they have a full on troop having a whale of a time on there head often this is highly visable to class mates and other adults and fecking well should be to the parents because there about the size of small bloody dogs.and its a full on teasing issue there is apsolutly no excuse to not treat even if you have to do it every day.
actual lice walking around in the hair takes an hour tops to comb out so yes they should be sent home,if the parents crap enough to not bother then perhaps not having the convienance of the school babysitting may force them to address it, if not then allow them a half day to comb out and class it as a ua if they arnt back and do this every day that they dont deal with live ones, obviously dont embarrass the child any further than there parents allready have by not doing anything.
sorry for the rant but i feel really strongly about this ive seen so many kids crying because of nit related bullying and its so not acceptable

effective and foolproof treatment steps.

1. as a standered every 3 day thing, when washing childs hair check check and check again (dont just check behind the neck or ears) comb through whilst concentrating.

1. if you see and egg or live louse comb with thin gap remover comb do this twice a day every day untill you havent seen an egg or louse for 10 days.

1. then drop down to once a day for another 14 days if you see nothing else then go back to the first step.

a nit and louse life cycle is as follows ... approx 10 days for egg to hatch then louse lives for approx a month but can lay shit loads of eggs every day.

if you need to grab a really cheap bottle of conditioner bung some in a spray bottle dilute it then spray on hair to help with combing. deterant sprays containing tea tree oil and gerainim can help but they have to be totally clear befor you start just remember not to use this as a reason to stop checking.

i should have elaborated that imo it should be actual lice presance that should be addressed for home sending not nits (eggs) it is only the live lice that can transfer to another childs head not a live egg as they kinda have a cement that sticks them to the hair.

oh and check your own hair as if your a normal parent who shows affection to your child then thinking automaticly that you wont have them is insane

I think a child who has been severely infested with nits should be refered to social services. A major chronic infestation of lice is horrid for the child and can be treated.

However I think parents need to be TAUGHT how to prevent lice recurring in the first place. Ie. when your child starts nursery you need to fine tooth comb your child's hair every three days whether they have nits or not.

It does get better when your child goes into year 1 and there is less learning through play. We found reception a nightmare for nits.

Yeah, because social services have loads of time to deal with nits!

I am a bit put out that it is suggested caring, affectionate parents do not have a problem with head lice. As I stated in a previous post I doused, combed every couple of days, washed made sure household was free yet my DS still kept getting them for almost a year. Therefore the premise that there is no excuse etc is not valid it drove me mad and really frustrated. And my children are not "scruffy" well they are when been out playing but they are clean and cared for and I do give a toss.

Our school sends the kids home with a letter in their bookbag - it gets put in there by their teacher so it's not broadcast to all and sundry.

We've had a nightmare with nits over the last couple of years. At one point I was treating my 2 every week with various nit treatments. They've only ever been completely clear for any length of time over the school holidays.

Their hair is always tied back, I use the Vosene anti-nit shampoo and I check them every other day with tea-tree conditioner and a Nitty Gritty comb, but there always seems to be a low-level presence as I usually seem to get a couple of adults.

I just don't believe that as many people nit comb their kids as regularly and as thoroughly as they say.

The reason for my cynicism is that I'm reading and seeing more and more parents giving in to their child's 'moods'.

Some parents don't hold their child's hand because the child 'doesn't want to', they don't strap them in their buggy because 'the child doesn't want to', they don't make them clean their rooms because 'the child doesn't want to' etc...

So why would they insist the child sits still and has their hair thoroughly nit combed once or twice a week if 'the child doesn't want to'?

"Yeah, because social services have loads of time to deal with nits!"

Social services are interest in extreme neglect. I am not talking about bog standard nits, but a major infestation where the child has sores and those sores are badly infected because of the constant scratching.

imnotmymum There is a difference between a child having the odd nit and an out of control infestation. Yes, recurring nits were a problem, but you dealt with it. Your child's nits may have been a nuisance, but they were not seriously compromising your child's quality of life.

I think non compliant children should be made to sit in front of a DVD about nits while they're being combed

You know the ones that magnify the lice x100 and show them crawling around laying eggs?

non-compliance love that phrase!!