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Provision of Milk to Necessitous, Expectant and Nursing
Mothers and Children under 5 Years of Age.
The Council's Maternity and Child Welfare Scheme includes
the provision of milk for necessitous, expectant and nursing mothers
and children under the age of 5 years. During the year under
review 3,992 applications were received from 1,002 families for this
service.
It is a condition of issue that the applicant attends the Infant
Welfare Centre for the district with her child or children under
5 years of age for the purpose of obtaining a medical certificate
that a grant of milk is essential on grounds of health. The choice of
milk, wet or dried, is left to the applicant, and in cases where dried
milk is desired such issues are made at the discretion of the applicant
either at the Town Hall or at the Infant Welfare Centre.
Milk is also supplied by the Council to certain families in
receipt of Public Assistance Relief, the cost of such issues being
refunded by the London County Council.
Health Visiting Staff and Home Visiting.
There are eleven full-time and four part-time Health Visitors
engaged in the home visiting of children under five years of age.
The Council employs five of these officers, and the Voluntary
Associations undertaking Maternity and Infant Welfare services
the remainder.
Health Visitors' duties include attendance at Infant Welfare
Centre sessions, visits and re-visits to children who have not
attained the age of five years and who are not being educated in
schools recognised by the Board of Education as well as to children
suffering from measles, whooping cough and diarrhoea.
A table setting out the visits made by Health Visitors during
1936 appears on page 29.
Child Life Protection.
At the end of the year 1936 there were 162 foster mothers on
the Council's Register, who together had 207 children in their
care for reward.
The number of visits paid to the homes of these children by the
Infant Life Protection Visitor during the year was 2,273.