
Weaning Support Pack
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Early Years care is defined as all childcare settings, including childminders, preschools and nurseries, for children from birth to five years old. Caring for any child between these ages is a huge responsibility and comes with its own challenges, such as pre-speech communication and huge development milestones. Most parents who place their children in Early Years care will experience a wide range of emotions. It’s frightening trusting someone else with your baby when you have been their primary care giver since they were born. If your child lives with an allergic condition, these emotions can be heightened.
Here is some useful information for Early Years care providers to help understand what to do to keep your baby safe.
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Make sure you and your staff are fully aware of the 14 major food allergens and common allergic conditions, such as asthma, allergic rhinitis (hay fever) and eczema. However, there are other foods outside of these 14 that can trigger allergic reactions, such as kiwi, chickpeas and lentils among others. If you have a school doctor or nurse attached to your Early Years setting, you can ask them for advice on this. Allergy UK’s Factsheets also provide information on allergy, including triggers, symptoms, management and treatment.
Working closely with the family of an allergic child is crucial for making sure you have the child’s most up-to-date medical information and for providing peace of mind for the parent/carer.
Work on these steps together with each parent/carer:
Many teachers and childcare workers use food treats to reward children when they have achieved something or been especially well behaved. If you have a child with food allergies in your room, avoid using food treats where possible. Use non-food rewards to be inclusive of children with food allergy, and to minimise risk.
Make sure all staff are aware of these signs, especially the visual signs when caring for a child not yet speaking:
Are you caring for a baby who is food allergic and weaning? If you are caring for a baby who is food allergic and currently weaning, good communication between you and the parents/carers is vital. You should let the parents lead you as to which foods to give the child, when and how. Most parents will also keep a symptoms diary and may ask you to record what their child has eaten and if they showed any allergic symptoms. For more information, take a look at our Weaning Pack www.allergyuk.org/weaning