It’s anticipated that later this year, schools and Multi-Academy Trusts (MATs) across England will be expected to comply with new Department for Education (DfE) statutory guidance designed to strengthen allergy management and improve the safety of children with food allergies.
If the changes come into force in September, as currently scheduled by the DfE, schools and trusts will have under three months to prepare. Now is the time to review processes, policies and systems to ensure they are ready for implementation.
For schools and trusts that manage catering in-house, the changes represent an important opportunity to strengthen allergen management practices and create a safer environment for pupils with allergies.
Why is the guidance being introduced?
The new statutory guidance has been developed in response to growing concerns around allergy safety in schools and follows several high-profile incidents, including the sad death of five-year-old Benedict Blythe in 2021.
Following his death, Benedict’s parents established the Benedict Blythe Foundation and campaigned for stronger allergy protections in schools. Their efforts have helped shape what will become the first dedicated statutory allergy guidance for schools in England.
The guidance aims to create a more consistent national approach to allergy management, helping schools better support children with allergies while improving staff confidence and emergency preparedness.
What will schools be expected to do?
While the final guidance is expected later this summer, the draft proposals indicate that schools will be required to:
- Have a standalone allergy policy covering prevention, identification of pupils with allergies and emergency procedures.
- Provide annual allergy awareness training for all staff, including catering teams.
- Ensure access to spare adrenaline auto-injectors (AAIs) for emergency use.
- Maintain individual healthcare plans and allergy action plans for pupils with significant allergies.
- Implement clear procedures for recognising and responding to anaphylaxis.
- Consider allergy management across all school activities, including catering, trips and extracurricular activities.
The guidance promotes an ‘allergy-aware’ whole-school approach, with a focus on risk assessment, staff awareness, clear communication and safe food practices.
Why catering teams have a critical role to play
Allergen and ingredient information, recipe management, menu updates and clear communication with parents and school staff all contribute to creating a safe dining environment for pupils with allergies.
For schools with in-house catering operations, many will be reviewing whether their existing systems provide the visibility and control needed to support these requirements.
How technology can help
Specialist catering management systems – such as Litmus Edge – can play an important role in strengthening allergen management. The system’s allergen management function automatically links supplier data directly to recipes and menus, removing the need for kitchen teams to manually flag allergens. This creates a safer foodservice operation, supports compliance and provides greater reassurance for both schools and parents.
Beyond improving safety and compliance, Litmus Edge also saves valuable time. Schools currently using the platform save an average of 15 hours of administration per month, which includes having allergen information automatically transferred from supplier systems to menus, eliminating more time-consuming manual approaches.
Importantly, allergen management in Edge extends beyond the 14 major allergens. Pupils can have an allergy to any food so the provision of the full ingredient list for each dish on the menu for parents and carers is hugely valuable.
Rachael Venditti RNutr, Registered Nutritionist and Head of Sales (Litmus Edge), said: “For schools, effective allergy management isn’t just about compliance – it’s about protecting children and giving parents confidence that the right safeguards are in place.
“With the new statutory guidance raising expectations around allergy awareness and communication, schools need systems that provide clear and accessible information. Litmus Edge helps bring that information together, supporting catering teams, school staff and parents to make informed decisions and reduce risk.”
Preparing for the new guidance – a free webinar
With implementation looming, now is the time for schools to review their allergy management arrangements and ensure they have the policies, training and systems in place to support compliance.
To help schools prepare, we’ll soon be hosting a free webinar exploring the upcoming allergen management guidance and what it means in practice for school leaders, catering teams, operational staff and anyone involved in allergen management.
Led by Rachael Venditti, the session will cover the key changes being introduced, common allergen management challenges within schools, practical approaches to managing allergen information safely and effectively, and the actions schools should be taking now to strengthen compliance and protect pupils.
If you’d like to be notified as soon as the webinar date is confirmed, please register your interest via our ‘Contact Us’ page here and we’ll send you details when booking opens.
In the meantime, if you’d like to learn more about how Litmus Edge can support allergen management, compliance and communication with parents, you can read more about our allergen management functionality here or get in touch to arrange a demonstration.
The Litmus team
