Nursery/Pre-school temperature - illness policy?

[Porgs2]

Not really an AIBU. Do the ones you use specify a temperature at which the child will be sent home? Children aged two to four. Thanks 🙏

Great thanks for spreading illnesses to vulnerable children. My child is immunocompromised and has just spent time in hospital with the flu... Which she picked up at preschool. Cheers

Our nursery will send the child home if they have a high temperature that isn't managed by Calpol, so that 38 or above. They give 1 dose and wait 30 min to measure the effect.

However, they will also send them home if they are not well within themselves and have a fever, so above 37.5.
If they have a mild fever (above 37.5) but are generally happy, they will usually tell us and ask if we want them to give Calpol, but won't sent them home.

In my experience though, when my kids have a fever around 37.8ish, they will start feeling unwell, refuse to eat or play and want to cuddle, so they will generally ask us to collect if Calpol doesn't bring it down.

Over 39 they send home.

38-39 with no other symptoms, they'll call and ask if they can give calpol, and then if the temp comes down they can stay.

38-39 with other symptoms (tired, upset, not eating etc) then generally sent home but obviously that's less cut and dry than a thermometer reading so it's a subjective judgement of the staff on the day.

We had a few issues with our eldest at nursery as he (like me) runs a high base temperature. There could be nothing wrong with him, and he will be 37.3/37.4. Again, same for me. Neither of us would start feeling unwell with a temperature until at least 38.5, and even then we might be fine.

This caused us a few problems until the nursery got used to him, as they would call me to pick him up if he was 37.8/37.9/38, but with him, he often just needed to take his jumper off and he would cool right down.

Eventually after the first handful of calls we mutually agreed that he had to be over 38 degrees AND looking unwell or had other symptoms. If he was just hot, they would just remove a layer.

Now he's at school we never hear from them, and he's the kid going wearing shorts in winter haha! My point is - you can't always just have a cut-off temperature at which you send them home, as sometimes they may be absolutely fine.

I’m like this but the other way! I run cold! So I can be feeling really lousy and the docs think I’m fine as my temperature isn’t high but it’s higher than normal for me.

We only check temperatures if children aren’t feeling well. Sometimes we are surprised that they don’t have a temperature, but obviously if they are unwell we ring parents anyway.

Yeah don’t do that it’s extremely selfish. Your child will be distressed and wil not have a good day. It’s extremely unfair on them. And you risk getting other children and members of staff sick. Then they have to miss out on work and pay because you were selfish. Don’t be a see you next Tuesday. Do not send your child in dosed up on calpol especially without telling the nursery. Imagine when the medication runs out and your child’s temperature spikes and staff are not aware. Over 40 could result in your child having a seizure and ending up in hospital.

The point is if your child has a temp they could be infectious and make others ill. Parents need to stop sending their children into nurseries with temps.

Yes a temperature is normal but it can also cause convulsions if it gets too high. And that would result in an ambulance and imagine if they had to administer medicine to bring it down and a child had too much because the nursery hadn’t been told the truth. It’s so selfish and unfair on your child. It’s puts them and others in danger. If you can’t take time off work to look after your sick child then don’t have them. I’m pleased you have your phone with you and I hope you answer it when the nursery rings. Sometimes other parents don’t answer for ages and you’re straight out here suggesting parents send their child in dosed up.