Overview

• Inquest jury concluded Benedict Blythe died from accidental exposure to cow’s milk protein causing fatal anaphylaxis.
• Jurors cited delays in administering his adrenaline auto-injector, opportunities for milk cross-contamination, and the school’s failure to share his allergy management plan as probable causes.
• The school bypassed its protocol by pouring Benedict’s oat milk in the staff room rather than the classroom, a deviation jurors say likely led to the fatal mix-up.
• Helen Blythe’s campaign for Benedict’s Law seeks to enforce mandatory allergy policies, standardized staff training, and spare adrenaline pens in every UK school.
• The Benedict Blythe Foundation, The Allergy Team and the Independent Schools’ Bursars Association launched a voluntary schools allergy code in 2024 as an interim measure pending legal reform.