Rules 4 Schools

Schools need to make sure that children with epilepsy have the support they need to be safe and included.

Since 2014, all state schools in England have been legally required to have a policy on supporting children with medical conditions. This means that all children with epilepsy should have an Individual Healthcare Plan (IHP) and school staff should be trained to meet their needs. Schools also need to take into account how a young person’s condition might affect their learning.

We conducted a survey of young people with epilepsy, and their parents and carers, to find out whether they were getting support that met Government standards. The results, published in May 2019, showed that many young people were still receiving inadequate support.

Key findings from our 2019 survey

• 1 in 3 young people with epilepsy do not have an Individual Healthcare Plan (IHP) at school to ensure they are safe and included (37%).

• Only 4 in 10 IHPs include how epilepsy might affect young people’s learning (39%).

• Only 61% of families said their school had a medical conditions policy in place.

• Only half the families said that school staff had been trained to support a young person with epilepsy (50%).

• 1 in 6 young people with epilepsy are excluded from activities or opportunities at school (17%).

• 1 in 3 families are not confident that the young person with epilepsy receives the necessary care and support in school to allow full participation in school life (33%).

Read more about what families told us:

Epilepsy support in schools report 2019

Young Epilepsy is calling for 4 things as part of our Rules 4 Schools campaign:

1. Schools to ensure that all young people with epilepsy have an Individual Healthcare Plan.

2. Schools to ensure they have a policy on supporting pupils with medical conditions.

3. A requirement on schools to publish medical conditions policies on their websites.

4. School inspections to include a routine check for support for pupils with medical conditions.

See how Veriton are helping with this campaign