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Report of the Medical Officer (Education).
151
suggested that legislation should be obtained which would make it the duty of the sanitary authorities,
as soon as a child was excluded from school on account of the verminous condition, of body or clothing,
to take it in hand and effect cleansing of the clothing, person and home. The London County Council
(General Powers) Act, 1907, confers power to examine the clothing or person of any child attending
a school provided or maintained by the Council, and gives the Council power to cleanse such a child.
It was left to the Council and sanitary authorities to arrange between themselves as to the use
of premises or appliances, and this has led to delay in arriving at any general scheme of even a
tentative nature which would be satisfactory to the Education Authority. Somewhat similar powers
are also conferred in Section 122 of the Children Act, 1908. Under these powers small experimental
stations were established by the Council in October, 1909, at the Pulteney (Strand), the
Chaucer (Bermondsey), and in December at Finch Street (Whitechapel) School where the Favus School
had been. The Pulteney station was transferred in September, 1910 to Bath-street (Finsbury).
The method of utilizing these stations is a modification of the earlier cleansing scheme. The nurse
notes all the children in school with verminous bodies or clothing and supplies to the head teacher
for each child a card drawing attention to the condition and containing directions for cleansing. These
cards are sent home in sealed envelopes to give the parent an opportunity of effecting cleansing. After
48 hours the nurse again visits the school. All cases not cleansed are separated and their names,
together with the days and times when children can attend the cleansing station are forwarded to the
divisional superintendent. A statutory notice is then served upon the parents requiring them to
cleanse their children; containing directions for cleansing; stating the stations and times at which
cleansing can be effected; and warning them that proceedings will be taken if the children are not
cleansed. The divisional superintendent informs the nurse of the time of service of the notice, and
after 24 hours the nurse visits the school, examines the children, and if not cleansed takes them to
the cleansing station. She then furnishes the divisional superintendent and Medical Officer (Education)
with names and addresses of the children and the date on which they were cleansed by the Council.
The medical officer of health is informed with a view to following up by cleansing in the home, and
the parents are warned that the need for another cleansing by the Council will involve police court
proceedings. Should the child have to be compulsorily cleansed again police court proceedings are taken
against the parents.
At the Council's cleansing stations three children can be cleansed each hour and the work
of the bathing woman is supervised by the nurse. Boys attend in the mornings, girls in the
afternoons, or vice versa. The child's head is carefully combed, cleansed with soft soap, rinsec
and again combed, the comb being dipped in paraffin. Where permission is given the worst part of
the hair, if covered with nits, is cut away. The work of these experimental stations can be followed
from the tables given below.
Cleansing
Stations.

The
" Pulteney."
The percentage of verminous to clean children attending schools in the neighbourhood of the
"Pulteney" centre as shown by the nurses examinations was as follows—
First examination on opening cleansing station, 6.4 per cent.
Last examination before the closing of station, 2.7 per cent.
Examination three months after closing the station, 1.5 per cent.

The
" Chaucer."