To think this child should have been kept off school (nits)?!!!

[WiseFinch]

I am a teaching assistant and have been working with early years this week. Child informs me that they had “fleas in their hair” and had to have special shampoo last night.,
My first reaction was to keep a wide berth but this is absolutely impossible with a 4 year old.

Through the course of the day, it is very clear that this child still has a raging case of nits and is itching their head - and also hanging off me every five minutes for a cuddle… This was two days ago and now my head is itching. I did not have close contact for very long and it wasn’t head to head, plus my hair was up, but I’m now absolutely paranoid I’ve got nits - and I’m sure they’ll be going around the whole class as we speak.

I am new-ish to this job and don’t have kids myself, but surely you should keep your child off until all of the nits are gone? It’s not a case of neglect here, family are well to do and are quite nice people! So I am fully prepared to be told IABU. What does everyone think???

Dd is in year 1 and currently has nits. Keep trying to remove them but just keep missing some as they never seem to go. She's only recently got them, but we've had messages from the school saying there's lots of nits going around on a regular basis since she was in reception. So I think it's pretty rampant! They didn't have this problem at nursery

I recommend this. We use it everyday and DD hasn't caught nits yet (touch wood!). The lemon and apple scent is quite nice.

Definitely going to comb tonight. Sounds so odd but if it was on my child I’d know to look through their hair I’m just struggling to think of how I’d do this with myself!! Just check on the comb if there’s any?

Yeah. I do mind in the shower with conditioner. If there are any lice, you’ll see them. The conditioner slows them down.

@WiseFinch put loads of cheap conditioner on your hair then after every pass with the comb dunk it in hot water - you'll see any nits floating in the water.

Your safeguarding knowledge is dangerous, OP. Just because a family is well-to-do and nice people does not mean that they are risk free.

If every child with nits was kept off school sometimes there would be no children left in the classroom!

Good lord, nits give me the horrors. DS8 has never had them, so it's obviously not as common in every area. I would absolutely keep him off if he ever got them and shave his head and burn the house down

What about worms?

There is always one… I’ve got multiple safeguarding certificates. This child is not neglected otherwise I’d have reported to my DSL instead of making a MN post 😂

It’s really not area dependent. Rich Tunbridge Wells schools just as likely as anywhere. The nits aren’t aware of postcodes

Took us three weeks of treatments to get rid of every single bit despite thinking they were gone. They lay little tiny eggs you can’t see. To everyone who is suffering with them, yes, the comb is more effective but the treatment will allow the comb to catch them easier. And god help you, I hate them!!!

Well if it makes you feel better I’m nearly 40 and like I said have worked in many schools and have never had nits! I have somehow managed to never catch them. I always keep hair tied back and also avoid head on head contact. Others on here have given good advice about leave in conditioners etc that are meant to be good as well.

I was sent home with nits in the 1980s- my kids in their early 20s were not.
I used tea tree shampoo/conditioner and a nitty gritty comb with my dd. My sons allowed me to cut their hair short when they got it

Nits are rife in primary school. The only way to stop them is every single parent condition and nitty gritty comb every couple of days. That's not realistic though. They stop getting them by around 8/9. The school should be sending out letters and educating parents on fine tooth combing (with a nitty gritty comb, not with the plastic crap that comes with nit shampoo).

Chemical shampoos are bollox.

Please tell me you’re not serious 😭😭😭 WHAT ABOUT THEM!?😭😭

Oh Op just wait till you hear about threadworms 😀.

Of course it's a never-ending cycle. Or nits would be extinct 😂

Jesus OP, do you know ANYTHING about working with young children 😂

She just did

No joke OP. Sorry!

I use a nit comb to comb the conditioner through my hair on every wash. Haven’t had nits for years (DC at secondary now where I think they’re less prevalent) but I keep doing it out of habit now.

Might help you feel more relaxed about the risk if you tried this I.e. constantly taking preventative measures? And definitely keep tying your hair up!

You mean that no concerns about neglect have been raised, not that the child isn't being neglected?

There's a big difference.

Apparently not?😂 I’ve only worked in nurseries and I’ve never had to deal with nits… and worms?!!!!!! What on earth? Please tell me adults cannot get worms from kids, unless you are wiping bottoms which I always did with a glove? Never seen kids with worms ever!

You can get worms from touching surfaces a child who has worms has touched (if you then put your fingers near your mouth) not from wiping bums

Well consider me thoroughly enlightened, nits and worms oh the joy!! Not me just thinking I was doing a nice job to make a difference with children! Not catching literal parasites 😂😂
Thanks for the advice everyone, I’m sure I’ve given you all a good laugh with my utter ignorance 😂😂😂