Can I treat a client with a latex allergy?

Yes — and in most salons the fix is one purchasing decision rather than a treatment plan. Switch to nitrile and audit the disposables. But a true latex allergy is an IgE reaction that can progress to anaphylaxis, so it is not the same as a client who "goes a bit red" in gloves.

Where latex hides in a UK salon, beyond the obvious box of gloves:

• Elastic in disposables — spray tan and waxing briefs, hair nets, shower caps, some couch roll bands.
• Highlight caps and rubber-tipped tools, hair colour bowls with rubber grips, some lash and brow tweezer sleeves.
• Adhesive plasters and bandages in the first aid kit, and some blue detectable plasters.
• Massage aids — cupping sets, resistance bands, hot water bottles, some couch covers.

The working rules:

• Go powder-free and nitrile salon-wide. The HSE advises against powdered latex gloves precisely because the powder carries latex protein into the air, where it can trigger a reaction in a client who never touched a glove. A part-latex salon still has an airborne problem.
• Ask about latex-fruit cross-reactivity. Clients who react to banana, avocado, kiwi or chestnut may have an undiagnosed latex allergy. Worth flagging at consultation.
• Treat first-appointment-of-the-day as the safest slot if you cannot fully eliminate latex — the room has had overnight to clear.
• Know where their adrenaline pen is before you start, if they carry one.
• Record it once, permanently. A latex allergy noted on a paper form in a drawer is not a safety system. It needs to surface on every future booking, for every therapist.

Refusing to treat when a nitrile swap would solve it is the weaker position — under the Equality Act, adapting is expected where it is reasonable, and here it usually is.