Health & Welfare
At Tetherdown the Health & Welfare of our pupils is paramount. We pride ourselves on the caring, nurturing and sensitive support provided in school, and we are an Asthma Friendly school.
When a child joins the school, parents/carers are asked to declare any medical conditions, including asthma, that require care within school. For Asthma, it is essential that pupils have immediate access to reliever medicines, and therefore inhalers and spacers must be provided by parents together with a completed Health Care Plan (HCP). The school will ensure spare inhalers and spacers are available for emergency use. Further details are available in our Asthma Policy on our Policy page.
Please also note for all extra-curricular clubs, including half-term and holiday camps, it is the responsibility of the parents to pass on pupil medical condition(s) as necessary to the club provider, including whether your child has a health care plan in school with medication.
For further Health & Welfare information, see our sections below.
Supporting Children with Medical Needs
If your child has any condition where medicine is involved in their treatment and where this medicine needs to be kept in school a Health Care Plan (HCP) must be completed. Please contact the school office for a HCP at admin@tetherdownschool.org.
For further guidance we recommend parents read our Supporting Children with Medical Conditions Policy which can be found on our policy page.
Accidents and Illness
We have qualified first aiders on site at all times who will administer first aid for minor accidents. Parents are contacted when any more serious accidents happen. For this reason it is IMPERATIVE that you ensure that we have a current phone number for home and work and the number of a close friend or relative who could be reached in case of emergency. Please ensure the school are updated if there are any changes in this respect.
Headlice: Unfortunately head lice are an unwelcome, but frequent feature of school life. Please check your child's hair regularly. One of the recommended ways of prevention is to comb hair thoroughly while it has conditioner on it, although there are many preparations on the market.
Medicines in School
Please note that we are bound by Local Authority regulations which seek to exclude any drugs from school premises unless absolutely necessary. This means that any antibiotics taken 3 times a day should be administered before school, at the end of the school day and at bedtime.
Should a child have to take antibiotics 4 times a day or have other medication during the school day as specifically instructed by the G.P. we are happy to administer this medicine. However, before we do so, parents must provide consent and complete the administering medicine form. Medication should be provided in original packaging giving clear administering instructions.
The Schools's Responsibilities
Other medication will not be administered in school (excepting crisis management medication, such as Epipen to combat anaphylactic shock, or upon instructions from a doctor).
When to Keep Children at Home
As a general rule, children who are unwell should not be sent to school. Any child with a stomach related 'bug' for example diarrhoea or vomiting should not attend school for at least 2 days (48 hours) after the cessation of vomiting and/or diarrhoea.
If your child has vomited or had diarrhoea during school hours the 48hr rule applies as follows:
- If the incident occurred during the morning session, they can return to school for the afternoon session at 1pm. For example: they vomited 11am on Monday they can return at 1pm on Wednesday.
- If the incident occurred during the afternoon session they can return to school as normal, after two full days. For example: they vomited 2pm on Monday they can return 8:50am Thursday.
Note, should your child continue to be ill, then it is after the last episode of vomiting or diarrhoea that the 48hr rule will begin. If a child is returned earlier you will be asked to return to collect your child.
Parents often ask us to provide work for their child if they are absent due to sickness. The class teacher will be in contact with you if your child is away for more than 2 consecutive days. Please contact the school should your child be absent for more than one week to discuss appropriate catch-up work.
As winter approaches, it is important that parents are reminded and updated on important health considerations for their children. Pupils and staff in schools are particularly susceptible to infections which increase over the winter months such as seasonal influenza (flu) and stomach infections (such as Norovirus). These can be very infectious and cause outbreaks in school settings due to the close contact amongst pupils and staff.
Further information and advice can be found below.
Medical Absence Request
Any routine check-ups medical or dental appointments taken during the school day, parents are not required to complete an Exceptional Leave of Absence Request Form, however you are required to bring into the school office evidence of your appointment (e.g. letter, email or text) either before your appointment or immediately upon your return.
We kindly ask that were possible to make medical and dental appointments outside of school hours and during the school holidays. We appreciate that this is not always possible, but every day in school matters.
If you do have an appointment arranged please notify the school office in advance of this appointment, by emailing admin@tetherdownschool.org.
Mental Health
Mental Health
- THRIVE Framework | Haringey Council
- NCL Crisis Line: Available 24/7, 365 days a year - 0800 151 0023
Haringey School Health Team Services
Haringey School Health Team run Virtual Parent Health Promotion sessions. Examples of topics they cover are common childhood illness, sleep, headlice and puberty. For a full list of topics, dates , times and the log in details click the link below.