EXCLUSIVE

by Ross Lidbetter

ross.lidbetter@essnmedia.co.uk

An independent school has been told to take extra care of its hygiene after five pupils were struck down with food poisoning.

Cumnor House School, in Pampisford Road, South Croydon, has been hit by an outbreak of campylobacter - a bacteria that causes food poisoning.

Headteacher Peter Clare-Hunt insists there is no proof that the bug came from the school kitchen.

But nevertheless environmental health officers who were called in to carry out an inspection have "reminded" the school about good hygiene practice.

"We had some children off school in around the second or third week of September," Mr Clare-Hunt explained.

"We have had five confirmed cases of campylobacter which is a type of food poisoning.

"As soon as that was confirmed we underwent a visit from the food hygiene consultant and environmental health, liasing closely with the Health Protection Agency."

Letters are believed to have been sent to parents keeping them informed of the situation throughout.

Mr Clare-Hunt added: "The recommendation that the environmental health and independent food hygiene consultant made are all very minor and by minor I mean temperatures of fridges. But there is nothing sinister.

"We're talking about food storage, temperatures of fridges not being too high or too low, making sure we don't prepare raw meat alongside salads.

"It is all good food hygiene practice but they have simply reminded us.

"We have kept parents fully informed."

All the boys who fell ill at the school, which takes pupils aged between four and 13, are now back in class "healthy and doing fine".

Campylobacter is the most common cause of food poisoning and symptoms can include stomach cramps and severe diarrhoea.

Anyone who contracts the bug is normally ill for two days to a week and infection can come from inadequate cooking of food to handling domestic pets.

Infection from person to person contact is, however, uncommon.

Mr Clare-Hunt said: "There is no safety issue with regards to school lunches.

"I would say 99 per cent of the boys, if not more, are having school lunches and can do so without any fear of risk whatsoever.

"In terms of tracing this back to the kitchen that will never be proved one way or the other."

Mr Clare-Hunt added that good hygiene practice is taken "very seriously" around the school.

This even includes disinfecting door handles so that bugs are not passed on from pupil to pupil.

"We are doing everything in our power to ensure the school environment is safe for the children," Mr Clare-Hunt said.