LONDON, Oct. 19 -- The government of the United Kingdom issued the following news:
Around 8% of children and young people in the UK have a food allergy. Some are at risk of anaphylaxis, a severe and potentially life-threatening allergic reaction that requires immediate treatment with adrenaline.
Today, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) is launching a consultation on proposals that would allow schools to purchase and keep spare adrenaline nasal sprays for emergency use in children with severe allergies.The consultation is being carried out UK-wide, jointly with the Department of Health in Northern Ireland.
Schools can already hold spare adrenaline auto-injectors for emergencies. Given that around 20% of serious allergic reactions to food happen in a school setting, the consultation is seeking views on allowing schools to hold adrenaline nasal sprays in the same way.
Under the proposals, schools could choose whether to hold adrenaline auto-injectors, adrenaline nasal sprays, or both. The existing safeguards would remain, meaning emergency adrenaline could only be given to children known to be at risk of anaphylaxis and by appropriately trained school staff.
The consultation also seeks views on how the proposals would work in practice.
Julian Beach, MHRA Executive Director, Operations, said:
"Ensuring children and young people with allergies have access to medicines in an emergency situation is vital.
"Adrenaline nasal sprays would provide an additional treatment option for children at risk of anaphylaxis - a serious and life-threatening condition.
"Through this consultation we want to understand if schools should be able to buy and hold these products alongside or in place of the adrenaline auto-injectors they can already stock.
"Our proposal is designed to ensure that medicines legislation keeps up with developments in healthcare while ensuring safeguards that support the safe use of emergency adrenaline in schools remain in place.
"We encourage everyone to share their views, including teachers, healthcare professionals, parents carers and those at risk of anaphylaxis."
Amena Warner, Head of Clinical Services, Allergy UK, said:
"Many parents of pupils living at risk of a severe allergic reaction may have this thought at the forefront of their minds of parents when they drop a child at school who lives with an allergy. The children themselves will increasingly understand their condition as they grow and move through the school system.
"Anything which can help alleviate worry and treat an allergic reaction promptly is a benefit to the allergic community.
"Storing a needle-free adrenaline device that is administered into the nose will offer parents - plus children and young people at risk of anaphylaxis - an easy to use device, more confidence to use it promptly and will give schools choice in how they prepare for and manage an allergic emergency."
Paul Whiteman, general secretary of school leaders' union NAHT, said:
"Schools already play an important role in supporting pupils with serious allergies, and we welcome the opportunity to contribute to this consultation. It's important that any proposals are safe, practical and properly supported, with clear guidance and training for school staff."
Prof Adam Fox OBE, Chair, National Allergy Strategy Group said:
"The obligation of schools to have spare adrenaline pens, alongside allergy safety policies and training, has been a huge leap forward for pupils with allergy.
"It's therefore important that schools are able to keep up with newer treatment options for patients at risk of anaphylaxis whilst ensuring that these additional options do not create confusion or unintended consequences.
"I am therefore very pleased to hear that everyone will get a chance to have their say in the consultation of this important development."
As part of the consultation, we would also like to hear from people about whether legislation should use broader terminology for self-administered adrenaline products that might become available in future. This will help ensure that any new authorised adrenaline products can be considered more quickly without requiring a separate legislative amendment each time.
The proposal would not require schools to stock a particular product or brand and would not replace the expectation that children carry their own prescribed adrenaline medicine. The supplies held at the school would continue to act as a backup in an emergency.
The consultation is open for eight weeks and welcomes responses from everyone, including schools, school staff, parents and carers, healthcare professionals, and anyone with an interest in improving access to emergency treatment for anaphylaxis.
New allergy-safety requirements for schools in England came into force in September 2026 as part of the first phase of Benedict's Law.
Notes to editors:
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The full consultation will be available here on 19 October and closes on 14 December 2026.
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The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) is responsible for regulating all medicines and medical devices in the UK by ensuring they work and are acceptably safe. All our work is underpinned by robust and fact-based judgements to ensure that the benefits justify any risks.
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The MHRA is an executive agency of the Department of Health and Social Care.
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For media enquiries, please contact the newscentre@mhra.gov.uk, or call on 020 3080 7651.
Disclaimer: Curated by HT Syndication.
