London's Pulse: Medical Officer of Health reports 1848-1972
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Hints from the Health Department. Leaflet from the archive of the Society of Medical Officers of Health. Credit: Wellcome Collection, London
London County Council 1964
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for London County Council]
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(a)Partially hearing with additional handicap.
(b)A number of epileptic children (apart from those in ordinary schools) are placed in schools for the delicate,
physically handicapped or educationally subnormal.
(c)These day school children (nearly all L.C.C. pupils) attend only part-time at the special classes.
(d)Includes 914 pupils in day and boarding special schools.
Educationally subnormal pupils—Section 57 of the Education Act, 1944 (as amended
by the Mental Health Act, 1959) deals with the examination and reporting to the local
health authority of children considered unsuitable for education at school, the review of
cases previously so reported and the cancellation of the report where the child on reexamination
is found to be suitable for education at school. Details of the number of children
dealt with under this section are as follows:
Special educational provision—At the end of 1964 special educational treatment was being provided for almost 13,000 pupils (London and out-county). The following table shows the main categories of handicap and numbers of pupils receiving full-time special education:
| Day special schools | Council boarding special schools | L.C.C. pupils in non-Council boarding schools, hostels and foster homes | Council's hospital schools and groups | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| London County Council pupils | Out-county pupils | Total | London County Council pupils | Out-county pupils | Total | London County Council pupils | Out-county pupils | Total | Special classes, etc. | ||
| Blind | - | - | - | 60 | 48 | 108 | 30 | - | - | - | - |
| Partially sighted | 235 | 158 | 393 | _ | — | — | 9 | — | — | — | — |
| Deaf | 172 | 35 | 207 | _ | _ | _ | 68 | — | — | — | — |
| Partially hearing | 146 | 16 | 162 | 31(a) | 41(a) | 72(a) | 28 | — | — | — | — |
| Physically handicapped | 806 | 67 | 873 | 80 | 34 | 114 | 77 | 207 | 163 | 370 | |
| Delicate | 1,343 | 55 | 1,398 | 154 | 12 | 166 | 108 | — | — | — | — |
| Educationally Subnormal | 3,640 | 60 | 3,700 | 616 | 13 | 629 | 152 | _ | _ | _ | _ |
| Epileptic (b) | — | — | — | — | — | — | 26 | — | — | — | — |
| Diabetic | _ | _ | _ | 12 | 29 | 41 | 5 | — | — | — | — |
| Maladjusted | 269 | 8 | 277 | 379 | 10 | 389 | 373 | 46 | 44 | 90 | 467(c) |
| Speech defect | — | — | — | — | — | — | 4 | — | — | — | 2,623(d) |
| Dual/multiple defect | — | — | — | 19 | 10 | 29 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 6,611 | 399 | 7,010 | 1,351 | 197 | 1,548 | 880 | 253 | 207 | 460 | 3,090 | |
Section 57 (as amended)—Unsuitable for education at school:
| 1960 | 1961 | 1962 | 1963 | 1964 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Children not in any school | 84 | 100 | 133 | 97 | 141 |
| Children in ordinary schools | — | 3 | 3 | 5 | 4 |
| Children in special schools | 57 | 68 | 72 | 60 | 49 |
| Children receiving home tuition under section 56 of the Education Act, 1944 | — | 1 | — | — | — |
| 141 | 172 | 208 | 162 | 194 |
| 1961 | 1962 | 1963 | 1964 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Number reviewed | 20 | 27 | 20 | 28 |
| Still considered unsuitable for education at school | 16 | 19 | 13 | 21 |
| Cancellation of report | 4 | 8 | 7 | 7 |