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Children who are made subjects of Care Orders should now have their personal needs assessed by a multidisciplinary
team which includes a psychologist. The Children's Department has become incorporated in the
new Social Services Department, with wider involvement in community care, and inevitably would request the
psychologist's advice about children in a wider variety of instances than just those in which a formal Care Order
has been made. The School Psychological Service now faces increasing demands from an entirely new Department.
Over half the special provisions for children have been established during the past three years to meet the
requirements of the new Acts. It is expected that they should continue to grow in the next few years as the full
extent of the educational needs of the handicapped becomes more clearly understood.
*This number is to increase to 8 by 1975 with the proposed S.S.N. Unit at Cheyne Hospital.
**This number is to increase to 4 by 1975 with the proposed S.S.N. Hostel in Bromley for children up to
16 years (?1973) and another Reception/Assessment Hostel.
(B) Analysis of work carried out in the 1971-72 Academic Year
Whatever the growth in diversity and complexity of duties, the work of the Service is still best presented
under the three main categories of individual psychological investigations, group studies and general education
advisory activities.
Individual Psychological Investigations
The psychological investigation of an individual child includes the necessary interviews and dialogues with
parents, teachers and any other professional concerned in the case. During the course of the year, many children
are put forward by their schools as presenting some problems. Some of these can be resolved through discussion
with the teachers on the spot. Such cases are not included in the number of individual investigations, because
they would not have been reported on; these numbers do not figure in the statistics of the Annual Report but
come under the umbrella term of advisory activity. »
This year, 623 children were investigated and reported on by the three Educational Psychologists who
manned the Service. Table I below sets out details of the referral agencies and the incidence of boys and girls
referred.