ABOUT US
The Allergy Team are the school allergy experts.
We work with schools to deliver practical solutions to reduce the risk of allergic reactions happening, to improve the safety and wellbeing of pupils with the allergies and to ensure school staff are confident and competent to recognise and respond in an allergy emergency.
We have launched the UK’s only training course specifically for Designated Allergy Leads and have built an allergy resource and training hub for schools, funded with a Women in Innovation Award from Innovate UK. The Allergy Team also runs the Schools Allergy Register, a published list of schools meeting best practice in allergy management.
In February 2026, The Allergy Team was asked to co-produce the Government’s new statutory allergy guidance for schools, alongside allergy charities and leading allergy clinicians.
Sarah Knight
Founder and CEO
Sarah has two children, Will and Freddie, who both have food allergies.
As a journalist, Sarah’s instinct was to arm herself with information to support her sons and keep them safe but the search left her feeling anxious, isolated and ill-informed. The Allergy Team is born out of Sarah’s desire to vastly improve the wellbeing and knowledge of those caring for children with allergies – to help them thrive.
Sarah has worked for major production companies including the BBC, ITN Productions and Remarkable Television, part of Endemol Shine. Credits include Series Producing Your Home Made Perfect and the BBC’s flagship consumer programme Watchdog.
Sarah lives in North London with her husband Ian and their two energetic young boys.
Sarah is available for one to one sessions with parents and carers and for consultancy with schools and businesses. She has delivered talks about living with food allergy at conferences, events and to schools, and has received praise for how she weaves personal experience into a wider, evidence-based context. If you would like to book a call with Sarah or invite her speak, please email hello@theallergyteam.com.
Jen Meakin
Founder and COO
Jen is mum to two boys and lives with her family in Oxford. She loves nothing more than bringing people together over food and wants to help families with allergies enjoy that too.
After leaving university, Jen trained as a chef at Ballymaloe Cookery School before going on to run British Food Fortnight, a celebration of British Food. She’s developed recipes for supermarkets, recipe-tested for celebrity chefs, catered at Number 10 and campaigned to improve children’s cooking skills. She has also worked in communications and marketing.
Her interest in allergen-free cooking began at Ballymaloe when her final menu was developed around a friend’s dietary needs. Jen wants to share her expertise in creating brilliant free-from dishes; her favourite recipe is chocolate mousse!
Katharine Carpenter
Founder
Katharine was a BBC News correspondent and presenter for more than 20 years before co-founding The Allergy Team.
She is passionate about delivering clear and accurate information, written in plain English, and understands how important it is that people living with food allergies have access to trustworthy, up-to-date resources.
As a correspondent and presenter Katharine worked across a range of platforms: writing for BBC Online, reporting across the BBC’s radio network and presenting live and in the studio on BBC One and the BBC News Channel.
ENDORSED BY LEADING CLINICIANS:
“Families need to know how to manage the risks to have as full a life as possible. This will provide an essential resource which is desperately needed.”
“There is a desperate need for a comprehensive, trusted resource which will not only make people safer but improve their quality of life enabling them to thrive.”