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FAMILY PLANNING WEEK
A Family Planning Week was held during November when the Family Planning Association, in
conjunction with the department, presented a number of "open days" at family planning clinics and, with
the assistance of the health education service, a number of film shows throughout the Borough. In addition,
a new leaflet about family planning methods, which also gave full details of clinics held in the Borough, was
published by the service.
HEALTH EDUCATION IN SCHOOLS AND FURTHER EDUCATION ESTABLISHMENTS.
The health education service continued to maintain its close association with schools in the Borough,
and the health education officer presented many talks on various health education topics. He continued to
make fresh contacts, one of which was Dame Alice Owen's Boys' School, where he presented a series of
lunchtime sessions for the sixth form. This activity was especially gratifying as grammar schools particularly
are geared to a high pressure syllabus, and very often find it difficult to include outside speakers. It is hoped
that further grammar school liaison will develop from this beginning.
The link with the Edward Seguin special school is still maintained, and a course of health education
topics of interest to school leavers was presented by the Health Education Officer.
Many more teachers are making use of the facilities offered by the service, some of whom are now
actively engaged in presenting their own health education programmes and, to this end, the service is able to
assist with the loan of sound films, slides, models and audio-visual aids. It will thus be seen that health
education is now becoming an accepted part of the day-to-day school curriculum.
PARENT TEACHER ASSOCIATIONS
Many Parent Teacher Associations seek the services of the Health Education Officer to talk at their
meetings. This enables a better understanding of many of the topics presented by the service to be maintained
between parent and pupil.
DENTAL HEALTH CAMPAIGN
Every year a very active dental health campaign is mounted in the Borough, and this year a most novel
wayof presenting dental health education to primary schoolchildren was devised. The Inner London Education
Authority appointed a Dental Health Educator who, with the collaboration of the Health Education
Officer and the approval of the Chief Dental Adviser to the I.L.E.A., produced a puppet show with such
characters as "Jimmy Germ",*Katy Carrot", "Andrew Apple", "Mr. Toothbrush and Mrs. Toothpaste",
"Peter and Paul Molar" and, of course, the Dentist, which was presented at 34 primary and infant schools in
Islington. The Dental Health Educator and the Health Education Officer were the willing puppeteers and gave
more than 50 performances to nearly 8,000 delighted children. There is little doubt that this form of dental
health education had the required impact. Many children will never forget the antics of wicked Jimmy Germ
and his final defeat by Mr. Toothbrush and Mrs. Toothpaste, and the words of wisdom of Mr. Dentist as he
said his fond farewells.
As a follow up to the puppet shows, to see if they had made a lasting impression, the children in many
of the schools were asked by their teachers to write stories and paint pictures of what they had seen, the
results were truly startling (some typical efforts are shown).
Y.M.C.A.
The contact with the Central Y.M.C.A. was maintained and the Health Education Officer continued to
give talks on human relationships to Islington school leavers, as part of a course presented by the Association
YOUTH CLUBS
Many other youth groups and clubs also requested talks, particularly those dealing with venereal
disease, drugs and human relationships.
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