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THE HANDICAPPED CHILD.
The Educationally Sub-Normal
At the end of the year there were 119 children in the E.S.n.
section of Faircross Special School. Of the total, 41 came from Barking
whilst 78 were from adjacent Boroughs.
It is understood that the County Borough of East Ham will be
opening their own Special E.S.N, school during 1954, and the removal
of East Ham children from this section of Faircross should enable us
to admit the children at present on the waiting list.
All 17 children who left this section during the year on ceasing
to be of compulsory school age (6 Barking children, and 11 out-ofdistrict
children) were recommended under Section 57 (5) of the
Education Act 1944 for supervision by the Local Health Authority.
One Barking and one Romford child were found to be ineducable
and were reported accordingly under Section 57 (3) of the Act. Although
these children might possibly have been certified as ineducable at an
earlier stage, one always feels that it is fairer to give them the benefit
of the doubt owing to the difficulties of assessment of individual cases,
particularly in the younger child.
The same caution is observed before children are admitted to the
Educationally Sub-Normal Section, and children who re thought to
be backward but capable of higher attainment are dealt with, as far
as possible, in ordinary schools. I am pleased to record that during the
year a special class was started in the Roding Junior Mixed School to
deal specifically with these children who are of average or even above
average in intelligence. This class takes children from other schools
in the Borough, and it is the aim to return children to their normal
class or school as soon as possible. I do hope that similar classes will
be set up in other parts of the town, for I am sure the need exists.
When the staffing ratio permits, ordinary schools deal with children
of low intelligence working up to their full ability (the borderline
E.S.N.) by means of small classes in the "D" stream—an arrangement
which has much to commend it.
The Physically Handicapped and Delicate
At the end of 1953 there were 71 children in the Physically Handicapped
and Open Air section of Faircross School, divid .d as follows:-
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