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Medical inspection rooms in schools
The Standards for School Premises Regulations, 1954, do not specify separate accommodation
for medical inspection purposes but merely require that suitable accommodation
shall be immediately available at any time during school hours for the inspection
and treatment of pupils by doctors, dentists and nurses. In many of the older schools
medical rooms are not available, and consequently inspections have to be carried out in
halls, classrooms, or other rooms.
Financial limitations imposed by the Ministry of Education severely restrict the
amount of money that can be spent upon 'minor improvements' at schools, so that
improvements such as structural alterations and better washing, lighting and heating
facilities for medical inspection purposes are necessarily proceeding slowly.
On the other hand, in the plans for the new comprehensive high schools now under
construction, well-equipped medical suites are being included. These will, in general,
contain a doctor's consultation room, provision for a dental surgery, a nurses' treatment
room, waiting space with changing cubicles and a 'rest' room. There will be variations
on this basic pattern according to the location of the school and the availability of school
health service clinics in the near vicinity.
The first of the Council's comprehensive high schools was opened at Kidbrooke
in south-east London in September, 1954. It contains a complete medical suite on the
ground floor in the administration block. The medical services, which may need to be
revised in the light of experience, provide for a full-time school nursing sister, three
doctor's sessions and two dental officer's sessions weekly.
Pupils on school rolls
At the end of 1954, there were 442,129 pupils on the day school roll, 313,908
children of primary and secondary school age were in attendance at County schools
and 104,480 at voluntary or assisted schools; in addition there were 15,584 children
under five years of age in nursery schools and classes or primary schools and 8,157
children in day special schools.
Medical inspection
The School Health Service and Handicapped Pupils Regulations, 1953, require that (except
under special arrangements) general medical inspections shall be carried out at least
three times during a child's school life, but it is left to the discretion of the Local Education
Authority to fix the ages at which these, and any other medical inspections which may
be necessary, are carried out. In London the practice for many years has been to carry
out as a routine four general medical inspections at specified ages during school life.
Such 'routine' inspections, however, constitute only a third of the total number of
medical inspections each year. The 're-inspection' of pupils noted for treatment or
observation, the 'special' inspection of pupils specifically referred to the school doctor,
and general medical inspections at ages outside the four 'routine' age groups, constitute
the bulk of the medical inspection work.

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