View report page

67
There are 42 orphan and deserted children boarded out under Boarding-Out Committees,
but only one of these is under 5 years of age.
2.—There appears to have been a slight increase recently in the number of applications
received in respect of cases of mothers with young children.
3.—The cost varies according to the Institution as follows
At Leavesden Schools the total cost is about 18s. per week, being a flat rate for children
of all ages.
For children boarded out the total cost is about 11s. per week per head.
The cost of maintenance at the House for all cases, including children, is about 14s. 6d.
per week, and at the present time the cost at the Infirmaries for the sick is about 30s. per
week. This cost is based on the total number of persons chargeable irrespective of age.
It is difficult to say generally whether a child would cost less than an adult.
As regards assessment of payments to be contributed by the mothers, each case is dealt
with on its merits by the Out-Relief or other Committee dealing with such cases, and
payments are fixed according to the presumed ability of the mother to pay, such payments
varying from about 1s. to 5s. per week.
With regard to the grant of out-door relief the cases are dealt with by the Guardians
upon the actual necessity of each case. It is, however, a principle that the income of each
widow with children in receipt of out-door relief shall not be less than 6s. per week per head
of the family, the Guardians making up this amount after taking into consideration the other
sources of income. In nearly every case the 6s. per head is exceeded.
There is no special grant allowed in respect of young children under 5 years of age.
Unmarried mothers are not granted out-relief in money, as this would be contrary to the
Orders of the Local Government Board (Ministry of Health).
The total number of widows, &c., with children in receipt of out-door relief, including
non-resident cases, is:—Women 78, children 255 (61 of these children being under 5 years
of age).

I am also desired to inform you that during the past three months 27 cases have been
admitted to the maternity wards, viz., 25 single women and 2 married women, who have
been confined of illegitimate children.
24 applications were made to the Committee during the past half-year by mothers for
permission to leave the House without their illegitimate children for the alleged purpose
of finding work and making a home, and in 14 such cases the applications were granted,
the children being retained by the Guardians, and 10 were refused. In some of these cases
arrangements were made lor the mothers to make contributions towards the cast of the