WEST Dunbartonshire Council have said that all their school catering staff have the relevant training for food allergens after an MSP called for greater awareness of the issue.

Following a Freedom of Information (FOI) request, figures showed that in the last three years, no staff awareness courses were revealed to have been delivered for staff, the public, businesses or schools across West Dunbartonshire.

This was the same across East Dunbartonshire, East Renfrewshire, East Ayrshire, Dundee, West Lothian, Falkirk, and other local authorities.

However, the council said that more than 250 of their school catering staff, including managers, cooks and catering assistants have completed nationally accredited food allergen training.

Maurice Golden MSP put in the FOI and said that those working in schools need to be aware of how to deal with food allergy.

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A spokeswoman for WDC said: “We employ a qualified dietician who works with our staff to develop school menus, taking into account allergens.

“Allergen information is included in all of the school menus and recipes which are published for parents and carers on our website.”

There is also a procedure for parents and guardians to register their child’s allergens with the school, and this information is shared with the catering team.

Maurice Golden MSP said: “School staff need to be aware to spot the signs of youngsters who suffer from allergies and dedicated courses would be the best way to achieve that.

“There have been some welcome steps recently surrounding food labelling, but we must ensure that our public sector bodies and staff are fully equipped on food allergies.

“It is an issue where key stakeholders can all work together in order to ensure the most decisive action can be taken.”