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81
Report of the School Medical Officer to the
Education Committee.
Meeting on Tuesday, 5th December, 1916.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
DAY NURSERIES. INFANT WELFARE.
At the request of your Chairman (Councillor S. H. Platten) I withdrew
this subject from my last report drawn up for your meeting of Tuesday,
November 7th, 1916, with the hope that my remarks might be typed, duplicated
and distributed before this meeting to all of you. But I regret to
report that I have found this impossible. As you know, I have no school
medical clerk, and your Secretary, Mr. Heap, has informed me that his staff
of three clerks is unable to do this small amount of clerical work for your
benefit.
I therefore reproduce here what advice I had to offer you on a matter
of great importance, which should be dealt with by you without further
delay.
On December 2nd, 1914, Circular 879, dated 26th November, 1914, was
received by your Secretary from the Board of Education. It is a memorandum
in regard to grants to day nurseries from the Board. These nurseries are
primarily to provide for infants and children up to three years of age, at
which age some Authorities admit them to school. You do not, until they
are five years of age.
I will read an extract from the report I made to you on the subject
on February 2nd, 1915
" Certain considerations are tabulated by the Board of Education,
" which should be borne in mind by the Local Authority which undertakes
" to form and maintain a day nursery. The Medical Officer of Health
" should be consulted as to the accommodation to be provided, and as to
" the maximum number of children to be admitted. The grant from the
" Board will be based on the number of attendances made during the
"year. Close co-operation is desired with the School for Mothers, Baby
" Clinics, and other institutions dealing with infant welfare in the neigh"
bourhood."