Policies: Safe & Caring Schools

Allergy Policy - UPDATED 2020

​Annette St PS and High Park Alt PS are peanut, tree nut and sesame seed free schools.  Please refrain from sending snacks or lunches that contain these ingredients and remind your children not to share their snacks with friends because of food allergies.

Your support is very much appreciated!
Thank you!!

On January 10th, 2020 an email was sent home regarding Allergies at the school. Here is the email:

Dear Parents/Guardians We have a number of students and staff at our schools with food allergies that can be life threatening. We as staff, have a shared responsibility with parents to provide a safe environment for our students and to share information and best practices that help keep students safe.

The first step to keeping children safe is ensuring allergies are reported to the school and that those requiring Epipens must have them readily accessible in case of emergency.

We also have Epipens in the school that can be used in the case of an emergency. The parent handbooks and our school websites indicate that we are peanut, tree nut, coconut and sesame seed free and ask that these ingredients not be sent to school in snacks or lunches. If we do become aware of food with these ingredients, they are sent to the office or packed away and parents are contacted to inform them about the potential danger to students. The list of ingredients that may cause an anaphylactic reaction continues to grow. The student who had a reaction just before the holiday break had a reaction to eggs that were baked in a muffin. There are many items that contain eggs and/or coconut and these are the 2 food items that have resulted in reactions in students in the past 3 years.

We have asked that food not be sent into the school to celebrate birthdays, but rather if a child wishes to share something for their birthday it be a small non-food item such as a pencil, eraser or stickers. Moving forward, class parties/celebrations will not have ‘shared’ treats. Students will be allowed to bring in their own snacks to eat, but not to share. Any activity that involves food in the classroom will be communicated to parents by the classroom teacher and those parents of students with allergies will be contacted directly by email or phone to confirm their child’s participation (i.e., baking or cooking as a class activity, Grade 4 Medieval Feast).

All school staff undergo Anaphylaxis training according to ‘Sabrina’s Law’ each year as part of their mandatory Compliance Training and must sign off on it. This ensures staff know how to identify the signs of an Anaphylactic reaction and how to administer an Epipen. Students have had yearly presentations to help them understand more about allergies and to understand the importance of not sharing food with their classmates. Parents of students with food allergies have taught or are teaching their children the importance of not sharing snacks, reading ingredients and having their Epipen. We are asking for your support in having a conversation with your child about the importance of understanding food allergies and how to keep themselves and their classmates safe. Thank you for your understanding and support.

Progressive Discipline

To download this document, click here