§ Mr. Ben ChapmanTo ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on guidelines regarding the control of head lice in schools. [175280]
§ Dr. LadymanOur policy, which is shared by the Department for Education and Skills, is to encourage a "whole school approach" to the detection and treatment of head lice. This entails encouraging parents to check their children and other family members for head lice as need arises, and arranging treatment—either through a combing regime or insecticides—where necessary with such advice and support from the local primary health care team (general practitioner, health visitor, school nurse or local pharmacist) as they may require. If this exercise is successfully undertaken at the same time by all parents of children within a school, then the spread of head lice can be controlled.