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174
Child Guidance
Through various sources, cases of psychological disturbance
come to light and are referred, if necessary, to the appropriate Child
Guidance Clinic.
These Clinics, which are spaced throughout the district, are
held in Hospital premises except at "The Willows", Red Hill,
Chislehurst, which is the Council's own premises. The remaining
Child Guidance Clinic sessions are held at Farnborough Hospital,
"Stepping Stones", Bromley Hospital and at Sydenham Hospital,
which serves the Borough of Bromley although it is outside the
geographical limits. One Consultant Psychiatrist is now responsible
for the Child Guidance work at local hospitals and at our own
Clinic at Chislehurst.
I am grateful to Dr. Rodriguez, Consultant Psychiatrist for
the following report in respect of the Chislehurst Child Guidance
Clinic, where he attends for 4 sessions per week.
During 1969 the demands on the Clinic have remained
practically unchanged. The number of referrals was 98 (1968—97).
The median length of the waiting list was 4 months (1968—
6 months) ranging from 1 day to 84 weeks!—in the last case the
parents had asked for the case to be deferred. Because of the lack
of adequate treatment facilities we are still falling short of the
goal of early diagnosis and effective treatment for all the children
referred to the Clinic. This results in long waiting lists and causes
frustration and even antagonism towards the Child Guidance Clinic
amongst parents and referring agencies. The appointment of a
Child Psychotherapist is urgently needed, and it is hoped to fill
this next year. As in previous years every effort has been made by
the members of the staff to co-operate with other care-giving
professions, through informal meetings, case conferences and
lectures.
In March the School Psychological Service moved to its new
premises at St. Paul's Wood Hill. Mrs. Preston and Mr. Bennett
have attended the Clinic to carry out psychological assessments and
also for regular case discussions. During the first half of the year,
Mrs. Cameron, Social Worker, attended the Course on Community
Care run by the London Boroughs Training Committee. Since 1st
December she has increased her number of sessions, while still
carrying on her duties as Mental Welfare Officer.
No major repairs were carried out during the year. Some
furniture and play material were replaced. Any future increase in
the staff will highlight the limitations of the present building.
Sixty-seven new children from the Borough were investigated
and taken on for treatment during the year (1968-67). The number
of children referred by local General Practitioners increased (1969
—21% of all the referrals, 1968—15%, 1967—11%). This trend