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55
out again. The Restaurant-keeper has complained several times
of the difficulty of keeping order, and when the number of children
is large an Attendance Officer is usually present, but this does not
remedy the other drawbacks, and the service of the meal does not
approach the standard of the Board of Education, which lays
stress on the importance of the way in which the meal is served.
Another difficulty is that many children are suffering from
unsuitable food more than lack of food. These children are often
referred by the School Medical Officer for investigation, but
inquiries show that they are not suffering from actual poverty,
though their food is inadequate to nourish them. In some cases
this is due to ignorance, but often it is because the mother has
no time to prepare a midday dinner, and gives the child money to
buy food. As a result, the midday meal may consist of pickles,
biscuits, fried fish, or some equally unsuitable food, while this
method of buying is disproportionately expensive. If it were
possible for children to buy a cheap dinner from a feeding centre
it would meet the difficulty of these under-nourished children, and
at the same time reduce the great fluctuation in numbers which
makes catering so difficult. Moreover, with such a system it
would not be known which children were paying and which were
receiving free dinners.
At present the names of the children to receive meals are
obtained from various sources:—
1. The School Medical Officers refer all cases coming
under their notice at routine or special inspections.
2. The Teachers send up the names of children whom
they consider to be in need of meals.
3. The parents apply for assistance.
4. The Attendance Officers report cases of poverty.
5. Various other sources—Charitable Organisations,
Church Workers, etc., send in names.
An investigation is made at once into the circumstances of
the family, such as the total income, the outgoings for rent, and
the number in the family, and on these facts the decision is made.