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expectant mothers applying for and receiving relief during the past year has decreased, they
have arranged to transfer the work to the Committees of the Welfare Centres at Queen's
Crescent and Grafton Road. The Committee had sufficient funds to carry on the work for
some months, and they did not feel justified in applying to the Borough Council for a grant
last summer. They hope that the grants (which the Council have contributed since 1921) will
be held in abeyance, and renewed in case the need for further financial assistance should arise
later.
The Mayoress of St. Pancras Home for Sick Poor Children.—This is situated
at "Avalon," 1, St. Alban's Road, and accommodates 18 children. The Borough Council
makes an annual grant of £500.
The cases admitted are children under 5 years of age who are either convalescent after
illness, or who are weakly, badly nourished, and need good food, fresh air and special care.
At the beginning of the year 11 children were in residence. During the year 117 were admitted,
and 14 were in residence at the end of the year. 114 were discharged during the year, after
an average stay in the Home of 26½ days; of this number, 41 were in good health, 63
were much improved; 13 showed no marked improvement; but owing to infectious disease,
several of these were discharged earlier than would otherwise have been the case. The chief
conditions for which the children were admitted, included—General debility, anæmia, convalescence
after measles, whooping cough, bronchitis, etc.
This home, like most small Institutions, is rather expensive to maintain, the average cost
per child, per week during the past year being £2 5s. l0d. In fairness it must, however,
be stated that ou several occasions the number of children in the home was very small, owing
to outbreaks of infectious disease, and this tends to make the cost per child unduly high.
Some difficulty has been experienced in finding sufficient suitable cases to occupy all
the accommodation which is available: the fact that it is situated in the Borough also causing
many mothers to hold the opinion that residence there does not constitute a "change of air."
The question may probably arise as to what better use could be made of the home. That is a
point of some difficulty, but if the necessary number of children cannot be regularly maintained
some other use should be considered.
Day Nurseries.—The Council assists the three approved day nurseries in the
Borough by the payment of one-quarter of the net expenditure, as approved by the Ministry
of Health, after the deduction of the payments made by the mothers. The effect of this is
that the total expenses are shared, as to one-half by the Ministry of Health, one quarter by
the Council, and one quarter by voluntary funds. The three institutions are the Whitefield
Day Nursery, 53, Whitfield Street, W. 1; the Kentish Town Day Nursery, Gospel Oak Grove,
N.W. 5; and the Margaret Day Nursery, 44, Ampthill Square, N.W. 1.