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The Childrens' Officer reported on 30 cases of children referred to her as neglected,
beyond control, in moral danger, or in need of care and protection; and the Senior Social Worker
(Health Services) on 103 Case Conferences held during the year.
Co-operation with General Practitioners
By a long-standing arrangement, a General Practitioner in the Borough is notified whenever
a school child on his list is referred by a School Medical Officer for specialist opinion. If
they wish to make their own arrangements for this, the parents are asked to take the child to see
him. If they prefer, the School Health Service makes the necessary arrangements for hospital or
clinic appointment, and the results are subsequently reported to both the General Practitioner and
the School Medical Officer.
During 1966, 501 school children were recommended for specialist opinion, and 472 of
these were referred through the School Health Service, for opinion and/or treatment to the appropriate
hospitals or clinics. The General Practitioners preferred to make their own arrangements
for the remaining 29 children.
Mental Health Services.
Referrals and Community Care.
During the year ended 31 December 1966, the steady increase in the work of the department
in the previous year was maintained, the number of cases referred having increased from 76
in the month of January 1966 to 102 in December 1966. The numbers requiring admission to
psychiatric hospitals increased by one-fifth, whilst in comparison, those needing community care
doubled.
The steady increase in the number of referrals for community care is likely to continue
because the move away from hospital care to care within the community, as envisaged by the
Mental Health Act, 1959, is now being implemented. The addition of three professionally-trained
staff has increased the confidence of general practitioners and other referring agencies in the
department's ability to give effective support to patients in their homes.
The first of the 3 National Mental Health Weeks inaugurated by the National Society for
the Mentally Handicapped was held in June and was fully supported by the Mental Health team.
Training Centres for the Mentally Subnormal
Fulham Training Centre has places for 60 boys and girls aged between 5 and 16 years, and the
average daily attendance for the year was 49.
The syllabus included social training, music and movement and simple instruction using
the Montessori Method of teaching. The obvious improvement in the children gained by using this
method encouraged two more members of staff to enrol in the Autumn for the Diploma Course in
the Montessori Method of Education.
An outing was arranged in June for a party of children to travel by public transport to
the Tower of London. Two open days were arranged during the year, the first was held in July
and the second shortly before Christmas, when parents and friends were entertained by the children
with a selection of favourite Christmas carols. Two Christmas .parties were generously given
for the children, one by a local publican and one by a Youth Group. Gifts of money were received
from the Hammersmith Branch of the National Society for Mentally Handicapped Children and a
public house, and another local publican presented sweets, cordials and oranges.
Visits were made to the Centre by groups of students from the North-Western Polytechnic,
the Froebel Institute and the Maria Assumpta College; student nurses from Fulham, Hammersmith
and Royal Masonic hospitals; and 2 post-graduate students from the University of Wisconsin.
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