Sharing information

Your child’s school might want to share information about his or her epilepsy with other people, for example staff in a work experience placement or outdoor activity centre. Schools must ask parents (or the pupil if he or she is old enough) to give their consent before any information about a pupil’s epilepsy is shared. Sharing information about your child’s epilepsy is your decision, but you should bear in mind that your child will almost certainly be safer if the staff are fully informed. If the school feel that they cannot ensure your child’s safety without disclosing details of their epilepsy, they can exclude your child from activities without breaking the law.

Example:

Ben has been told by his doctor that he can swim, as long as he is supervised by an adult who knows what to do if he has a seizure. Ben’s dad doesn’t want anyone to know about Ben’s epilepsy, so he will not allow the head teacher to tell the supervising staff. If the head teacher excluded Ben from swimming, because he could not be safely supervised, it is likely that this would not be against the law.

If you have told the school about your child’s epilepsy, you can tell them about any reasonable adjustments they should make, and the school cannot exclude your child from activities because of their epilepsy. If they do this, they are likely to be acting illegally under the disability discrimination laws, unless they have a material and substantial justification. Schools must consider the needs of all children with disabilities when planning off site activities, and this may mean they make changes to activities or venues so that children with disabilities can be included.

• More information about disability discrimination

The Equality and Human Rights Commission can give more information about disability discrimination in education.

• Epilepsy awareness project for primary schools