A Homeschool Co-op Emergency Plan, With an Outline to Copy

A co-op emergency plan fits on one page. It says who to call for each child and what each child is allergic to. It says where the first aid kit is and who knows how to use it. And it sets out what the adults do if a child is hurt, goes missing or the building has to be left in a hurry. The details come from each family and your meeting place, the steps from first aid bodies like the Red Cross. The outline below is ready to copy. The plan only works if every adult has heard it, so read it aloud at the start of each term.

The co-op rules article puts "an emergency plan everyone has heard" on its short list of safety basics. This page is that plan.

How do homeschool co-ops handle emergencies?

Mostly by agreeing a few simple things in advance. The public handbooks we read share a pattern. One co-op reviews the procedures, emergency exits and meeting points for fire and severe weather at the start of each session. It asks every class leader to take attendance, so everyone can be counted in an emergency. And it keeps a first aid kit at the welcome desk. Another sets out three steps after any injury: care for it with first aid, tell a leader, and fill in an incident form signed by the parent and a leader.

The UK Department for Education's guidance for parents choosing a club or activity says the same things from the other side. Before a child's first session, it suggests checking for a clear exit route and a first aid kit. It also lists a person responsible for first aid, and processes for a fire or emergency. Your co-op may not be a club, but it's a fair checklist.

In a small Waldorf-inspired co-op, most of this is easy. The difference is that everyone has to know it, not just the coordinator. The parent leading circle in the garden and the parent washing paint jars in the kitchen both need to know where the kit is.

What emergency contact information do co-ops need from parents?

Ask each family to fill in one form when they join, and again at the start of each year. It needs:

• The child's name, age and date of birth.
• Both parents' mobile numbers.
• A second adult to call if the parents can't be reached, with their relationship to the child.
• Allergies, and what happens and what to do if the child reacts.
• Medical conditions, such as asthma or epilepsy, and any medicines.
• The family doctor's name and number.

One co-op's handbook asks every family to keep at least one emergency contact up to date. HSLDA suggests asking about allergies at registration and sharing them with all group leaders.

This is private information, so decide who keeps it. The DfE guidance for parents suggests asking any provider how it stores information about your child, who can see it and whether it's shared. Many small co-ops keep a paper copy in a folder that travels with the first aid kit, and a copy with the coordinator.

Allergies and anaphylaxis

For a child with a severe allergy, ask the parent for a written plan from their doctor. In the US, FARE (Food Allergy Research & Education) publishes a Food Allergy and Anaphylaxis Emergency Care Plan, signed by a physician. It lists the child's allergens, symptoms and treatment. FARE's advice is to keep the plan where others can find it and make sure others know what to do.

HSLDA suggests that a group may restrict high-risk foods, such as nuts, when a child has a severe allergy. It also suggests that leaders learn to respond to a severe reaction that needs an adrenaline auto-injector. In a co-op where the snack is shared, and where a child might be handed a slice of harvest bread or a honey cake at a festival, this matters.

The NHS sets out what to do if someone has anaphylaxis:

1. Use an adrenaline auto-injector, such as an EpiPen, if there's one.
2. Call 999 (or your local emergency number) and say you think it's anaphylaxis.
3. Lie the person down. Raise their legs, or let them sit up slowly if they're struggling to breathe.
4. If the symptoms haven't improved after 5 minutes, use a second auto-injector.

The NHS adds that the person shouldn't stand or walk, even if they feel better. Every adult should know which children carry an auto-injector and where it's kept that morning.

First aid: the kit and the person

The kit. The American Red Cross lists what it suggests for a family of four. It includes dressings, plasters, gauze pads, roller and triangular bandages and tape. It also has antiseptic wipes, gloves, a thermometer and a breathing barrier. It also suggests adding emergency phone numbers and checking the kit for used or out-of-date items. Keep the kit in the same place every week, and take it with you when the children go to the woods or the park.

The person. Try to have at least one adult each co-op day who has done a first aid course that covers children. The British Red Cross runs four-hour courses. It also has free online guides for babies and children, from choking and bleeding to head injuries and asthma attacks. Your parent job schedule can include "first aider this week" alongside snack and sweeping.

The steps. The American Red Cross teaches three words: check, call, care. Check that the scene is safe and check the person. Call the emergency number, or ask someone to, if the person is unresponsive, isn't breathing normally, is bleeding heavily or has another life-threatening condition. Then care for them according to what you find and your training.

Emergency numbers differ: 911 in the US and Canada, 999 in the UK, 000 in Australia and 111 in New Zealand. Write yours on the plan and on the lid of the kit.

What to do if a child is hurt

Most co-op injuries are small: a grazed knee on the garden path, a needle in a finger during handwork. In a parent-led co-op the parent is usually a few steps away. A simple order keeps everyone calm:

1. Care for the child with first aid, within what you're trained to do.
2. Fetch or call the parent, if they're not already there.
3. Call the emergency number straight away if it's serious. Don't wait for the parent to decide.
4. Tell the coordinator.
5. Write a short note of what happened, when, and what was done. One co-op asks for an incident form signed by the parent and a leader.

A short note may feel like fuss for a scraped knee, but it helps if anyone asks later what happened. If your co-op has insurance, ask your insurer what records it wants. The insurance article goes through what co-ops in the US look into.

What to do if a child is lost

The best help here is prevention. Count heads at the start, before and after going outside, and at the end. Choose one meeting place that every child knows, like the big tree by the gate or the bench by the door, and practise going there.

If a child can't be found, the NSPCC's procedure for missing children at events gives a clear order:

1. Keep the other children supervised while the search goes on.
2. Find out where the child was last seen.
3. Send adults to search, each to a set area, and ask them to report back quickly.
4. Tell the child's parent, if they aren't already searching.
5. Write down a description: hair and eye color, height and build, and what the child is wearing.
6. Call the police if the search doesn't find the child, and always within 20 minutes of noticing they were missing.

The US National Center for Missing & Exploited Children tells parents to call law enforcement immediately if their child is missing, and, in a shop, to tell the manager or security first. If you're in doubt, call sooner.

Fire, weather and leaving the building

Your plan depends on where you meet. In a rented hall, ask where the exits, fire extinguishers and assembly point are, and whether the hall has its own rules. In a family home, walk the exits once with every adult. In a park or woodland, agree the meeting point and the boundary before the children run off. The meeting places article covers the questions to ask a host.

Then practise once a term. It needn't be frightening. Walk it together like any other part of the morning. The children line up and walk out to the meeting point. The adult leading counts heads, just as before a nature walk.

A co-op emergency plan to copy

Change it to fit your place and your group. Brackets are for your own details.

Our emergency plan

1. Emergency number: [911 / 999 / 000 / 111]. Our address: [address, including the nearest cross street or landmark].
2. First aid kit: kept [where]. Checked by [name] at the start of each term.
3. First aider this week: [name, from the schedule].
4. Family forms (contacts, allergies, medicines, doctor): kept in [the folder with the kit]. A copy stays with [the coordinator].
5. Allergies: [child] carries an auto-injector, kept [where]. Every adult has seen the allergy plan.
6. If a child is hurt: first aid, then the parent, then the coordinator. Call the emergency number straight away if it's serious. Write a short note afterwards.
7. If a child is missing: the other children stay with [named adults]. The rest search set areas. Tell the parent. Call the police if we haven't found the child within [a few] minutes, and never later than 20.
8. If we have to leave the building: exits are [where]. We meet at [place]. [The adult leading] counts heads.
9. Headcounts: at arrival, before and after going outside, and at the end.
10. We read this plan aloud at the start of each term and walk the exits once.

Put it at the front of your co-op handbook, and keep a copy taped inside the lid of the first aid kit. If your co-op runs on Starpath, family details sit in one place alongside the group calendar and job schedule.

The day-to-day side of safety, from two adults with every group to the bathroom rule and carving knives, is in the co-op safety policy. What keeps a child at home in the first place is in the co-op sick policy.

This page describes what first aid bodies and co-ops have published. It isn't a substitute for a first aid course or medical advice. For your own group, check with your state homeschool association, an insurer or a lawyer about anything your plan must include.