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The announcement is the biggest treatment breakthrough for type 1 diabetes since the discovery of insulin.
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Home > Knowledge & support > Guide for parents and carers > Education – from nursery to university > Childcare and starting pre-school
There’s no reason why your child can’t enjoy nursery or pre-school, just like other children. Your Diabetes Healthcare Team and the nursery or pre-school will be able to help you make sure everything is in place for your child to have a healthy and happy time.
Nurseries and pre-schools should have the following in place:
This outlines how the nursery or pre-school supports children with medical needs. The policy should help you, the nursery or pre-school and your child’s Diabetes Healthcare Team to put together a plan to manage your child’s type 1. It should include details like; what type 1 diabetes is and how it is managed, how to administer insulin and who can do it, a meal plan (if needed) and how to deal with hypos and who to contact in an emergency. For more details view the Statutory Guidance for England.
Nurseries and pre-schools should have staff who are trained in how to look after a child with type 1 diabetes. This training can be provided by a Paediatric Diabetes Specialist Nurse and should be included in their medical conditions policy.
Most nurseries and pre-schools work to provide nutritionally balanced meals for children, which your child can eat too. However, you will need to work with the nursery or pre-school on a meal plan, so that the member of staff giving your child insulin knows how much carbohydrate is in their meal and how much insulin they will need.
Childminders are governed by Ofsted and have to follow the same guidelines as nurseries when it comes to looking after a young child with type 1 diabetes. This includes having a policy in place and devising a care plan along with you and your child’s Diabetes Healthcare Team.
Babysitters are more casual childcare and are often friends and family who look after children occasionally. It’s important that they know how to look after your child and their type 1, even just for a few hours, and know what to do in an emergency.
Use our quick guide and hypos kit to help the person looking after your child know what to do.
I had six weeks off work when she was diagnosed and we kept her off nursery for the first month. She missed the start of term, just so that we could become better at dealing with her type 1 and more knowledgeable. When she went back to nursery, we knew what we were talking about and what we were doing.
Our schools e-learning module helps schools, nurseries and pre-schools to care for children with type 1.
Download our free hypos kit to learn how to manage your child's hypo in educational settings.
Our guide to managing type 1 diabetes gives you information and support on managing your child’s blood glucose levels, how to count carbs and deal with hypos and hypers.
Learn about the different types of tech for monitoring blood glucose levels and getting insulin into your child’s body.