Daughter starting full time school

[gingerthecat]

Hi, I'm new here and after a bit of advice if anyone can help me.

My daughter is four years old, type 1 and currently using an insulin pump. She starts full-time school in September and I'm worried that they're not taking her diabetes seriously enough. We've already had several meetings with the nursery which is attached to the school and they seem to take very little notice, if any, of what we tell them. For instance, they suspected one time that she might be hypo (as no one wanted to test her blood sugar, they just guess) and they gave her a banana, instead of the jelly babies we supplied. This was after a visit from the DSN and the written care plan that they could have consulted.

We recently had a meeting with the people who will be teaching her in Reception and they made it clear that they are not prepared to test her bs and bolus for her at dinnertime which will mean me going up to school to do it which is fair enough, but what worries me is what they are going to do if she's hypo. Does anybody have any knowledge of legislation which covers children with diabetes at school?

Any help or stories of other peoples experiences would be greatly appreciated, thnak you.

(And sorry for the long first post)

 

[pplprincess5480]

Hi,

I understand your concerns. My daughter started school this year and is pumping. I don't think there are any regulations about diabetes in school but the school have a duty of care towards your child and that means keeping her safe and able to learn. She cannot do this if her diabetes is not managed at school.

I fought really hard to get county council SEN funding for my daughter. She gets full time 1:1 care but she has communication issues as well and her diabetes is very unstable despite our best efforts. You could look into getting funding to cover testing and bolus times. Diabetes UK have a huge amount of information about diabetes and school as well as really helpful people on their phone lines. It may be worth giving them a call to see if they can help.

It's taken most of this year to get my daughters care sorted, her school had no idea and no inclination to find out what diabetes is and what it involved. I have had to fight hard but it's worth it to know that she is safe.

Take care

 

[gingerthecat]

Thank you for your reply. I''m sorry to hear that it's been such a struggle to get proper care for your daughter in school, it all seems to be a bit hit and miss. Some schools will take on everything and others just don't seem interested at all.

I recently had yet another meeting with the school which was actually a bit more positive this time so I guess I'm just going to have to wait and see how it goes in September. I'll bear in mind your advice about ringing DUK, thanks again.

 

[Robinredbreast]

Hi, I'm new here and after a bit of advice if anyone can help me.

My daughter is four years old, type 1 and currently using an insulin pump. She starts full-time school in September and I'm worried that they're not taking her diabetes seriously enough. We've already had several meetings with the nursery which is attached to the school and they seem to take very little notice, if any, of what we tell them. For instance, they suspected one time that she might be hypo (as no one wanted to test her blood sugar, they just guess) and they gave her a banana, instead of the jelly babies we supplied. This was after a visit from the DSN and the written care plan that they could have consulted.

We recently had a meeting with the people who will be teaching her in Reception and they made it clear that they are not prepared to test her bs and bolus for her at dinnertime which will mean me going up to school to do it which is fair enough, but what worries me is what they are going to do if she's hypo. Does anybody have any knowledge of legislation which covers children with diabetes at school?

Any help or stories of other peoples experiences would be greatly appreciated, thnak you.

(And sorry for the long first post)

Hi there I am sorrry to hear of your concerns and worries. You could contact JDRF( Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, dedicated to finding a cure) which is an excellent organisation in helping youngsters and parents/carers/schools etc with Type 1 Diabetes.They have a website. Below is some information which would help you( from JDRF) and you could also get help and information about disability discrimination as well. Your childs health and well being comes first and her transission into main stream school should be a happy and safe one.

The “Talking T1” primary school pack contains:
•Curriculum-linked activity plans for teachers
•Head teacher guide and procedure templates for managing type 1 diabetes in school
•A pack of Parent Information Guides
Visit the T1 website to view this pack online
I hope you can get some help and advice soon. With best wishes RRB

 

[gingerthecat]

Hi, RRB, thank you, that pack sounds just the thing, I think I'll give them a ring before she starts full time.

Many thanks

 

[elainechi]

hi there. contact the senco person at school who should bend over backwards for you. part of there job is to register any child who has a life threatening disability or condition. someone needs to help her test her blood and test it if she can.t in an emergency. maybe someone in school has diabetes and can help. we all try as parents to make diabetes part of normal life. but it can be life threatening. shame on inset days they don.t learn about diabetes asthma as it is on the increase xx