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173
deal with mixed trainees. Transfer of the 17 Greenwich boys from
Knoyle Street could be entertained although this would necessitate
male staff being recruited.
Knoyle Street Centre
There are 17 Greenwich boys attending this Centre which is
held in a Church Hall and is under the control of the London
Borough of Lewisham. Woodwork, basket making, etc., are the
main activities but more recently, work involved in dismantling
telephones has been obtained from the Post Office. Boys are conveyed
to and from the centre by public transport under the supervision
of 6 paid guides.
Blackwall Industrial Training Centre
This building, which can accommodate 36 trainees, is bright,
airy, has good central heating and a well equipped canteen. There
are, however, a number of drawbacks in its design, e.g. work and
storage spaces are generally inadequate, work in progress has to
be stored on wall shelving in the workshops which are already too
small for their purposes and all completed work has to be stored
in the entrance hall to await collection.
Types of productive labour which can be undertaken are
limited by the size of the workshops and supervision is restricted
by the building's lay-out. For example, the outside workshop
where 3 printing presses are located requires the constant presence
of an assistant supervisor and yet the workshop will accommodate
only 7 trainees. Of the remaining 29 trainees in the 2 workshops
in the main building, one group is under the control of the supervisor
and the other under that of the assistant supervisor. Due to
clerical and general administrative duties and the operation of the
'leave' rota the assistant in the main building is frequently found
supervising both workshops.
Where possible it Is the aim of the Centre to bring the standard
of ability of trainees to such a level that they can compete in the
open market. Where this object proves unattainable, the policy
is to teach them to be emotionally stable and socially acceptable in
order that they may live harmoniously within the community.
During the year efforts have been directed to diversifying the
industrial activity in order that work of a more complicated type
could, with advantage, be accepted. The trainees have shown
great versatility in adapting themselves to simple light industrial
processes and further advances are possible.
Contract work undertaken by the Centre is mainly on behalf
of a firm of stationers suppliers and concerns the making of
'counter displays' and the carding of general stationery products.
Although outwardly simple, such work has inestimable value in