England

Allergy safety policy

Official wording, responsibilities and review duties.

Evidence link

Back to School Policy Checker

Requirement and scope

Choose the governance type; academy and maintained duties differ. Choose a phase; confirm age and provision conditions.

Maintained school

Statutory policy [1]

Must publish. Website publication within the stated scope. [1]

Source-established phases: Primary, Secondary, All-through, Special
Source-established school types: Mainstream school, Special school
EYFS condition: No separate EYFS condition stated
Accountable: not stated in the source
Approval: not stated in the source
Operational owner: not stated in the source
Review cycle: At least annually and regularly [1]

Independent schools and pupil referral units are outside this catalogue’s supported governance mapping.

Source-established school-type exclusions: Maintained nursery school.

Academy or free school

Statutory policy [2]

Must publish. Website publication within the stated scope. [2]

Source-established phases: Primary, Secondary, All-through, Special
Source-established school types: Mainstream school, Special school
EYFS condition: No separate EYFS condition stated
Accountable: not stated in the source
Approval: not stated in the source
Operational owner: not stated in the source
Review cycle: At least annually and regularly [2]

Source-established phase exclusions: 16–19.

Independent schools and pupil referral units are outside this catalogue’s supported governance mapping.

Source-established school-type exclusions: 16–19 academy.

The current governance guides state new allergy safety duties from September 2026; allergy is not an optional medical-policy extra.

The statutory allergy-guidance scope excludes maintained nursery schools and 16–19 academies. Wider health, safety and support responsibilities are separate.

Official wording

7.8.3 Supporting pupils in school with medical conditions

From September 2026, schools must comply with new allergy safety duties, including: having an allergy safety policy, reviewed regularly (at least annually), publicised with staff and pupils and published on the website having regard to statutory guidance on allergy safety

Maintained schools: governance guide · Reviewed 2026-10-26

Effective from 2026-09-01

7.10.3 Supporting pupils in school with medical conditions

From September 2026, trusts must comply with new allergy safety duties, including: having an allergy safety policy, reviewed regularly (at least annually), publicised with staff and pupils and published on the school website having regard to statutory guidance on allergy safety

Academy trusts: governance guide · Reviewed 2026-10-26

Effective from 2026-09-01

Who is this guidance for? Maintained nursery and 16–19 academy exceptions

This is statutory guidance for the following education providers (i.e. they must “have regard” to it in fulfilling their statutory duties): • governing bodies of maintained schools, including special schools but excluding maintained nursery schools • management committees of PRUs • proprietors of academies, including free schools and alternative provision academies (but excluding 16–19 academies) While it is not currently statutory guidance, the Government intends to introduce equivalent

Allergy safety in schools · Reviewed 2026-10-26

Effective from 2026-09-01

Sources and updates

Official evidence reviewed 2026-10-26. Check the source edition and conditions before acting.

Maintained schools: governance guide
Reviewed edition matches. Source text matches the reviewed edition.
Reviewed on
2026-10-26
Reviewed version
2026-07-15T15:01:39+01:00
Last checked
2026-10-27T11:00:36.203Z
Reviewed text digest (SHA-256)
e52a8a3de45c63b134d0ebf973be1ac134e940f50648449b0251fde69c0d7046
Official content identity
5e3468ca-6e6f-4b22-926e-9f851ba2d630
Official content digest (SHA-256)
1d3f2f6c58228e0a50a9591032bcf659d1f5c1c9da375fc1053abb88fdb64829
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/maintained-schools-governance-guide/maintained-schools-governance-guide
Track updates in the Roundup
Academy trusts: governance guide
Reviewed edition matches. Source text matches the reviewed edition.
Reviewed on
2026-10-26
Reviewed version
2026-07-20T12:52:21+01:00
Last checked
2026-10-27T11:00:36.203Z
Reviewed text digest (SHA-256)
11ac340ef6b86f38865ce0ece27f1d47949e810ddfde066af3779588c1d1b8c2
Official content identity
21a3425c-77ff-4fae-b81d-42b5214b2ad2
Official content digest (SHA-256)
b99d266b3aa58de32e2f1428cb9a45065a6e52e26c65344e9df5ecacac19b1a4
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/academy-trust-governance-guide/academy-trust-governance-guide
Track updates in the Roundup
Allergy safety in schools
Reviewed edition matches. GOV.UK metadata checked; captured PDF matches the reviewed edition. Live file bytes are unverified.
Reviewed on
2026-10-26
Reviewed version
2026-07-06T12:38:29+01:00
Last checked
2026-10-27T11:00:36.203Z
Reviewed text digest (SHA-256)
8710821dd1f4ef32bc72670c2e531d45a2a9b417b7a736cd34543ab64d1a07a5
Official content identity
3ed085d3-497e-4e37-91e4-dbaec695d176
Official content digest (SHA-256)
9a87ed01d9368bb9f14e394863c1b3bfa871f116354df632b83155a4e5e8a888
Reviewed PDF digest (SHA-256)
e3c3e6cf15dc8868b5546dfd051b0e1cfb2b849eae55c2f3fad07578e14786ba
https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/6a4b8f49045e1108aaa5ebbc/allergy_safety_in_schools_statutory_guidance_June_2026.pdf
Official attachment · https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/6a4b8f49045e1108aaa5ebbc/allergy_safety_in_schools_statutory_guidance_June_2026.pdf
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Guidance, not legal advice. Local checks are not a compliance judgement; other duties may apply.