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18
not onlv of school children, but of the "under fives" as well, and
an investigation was carried out to see to what extent this applied
in Enfield. Your Health Visitors investigated some 1,800 children
choscn at random amongst the children they visit, and it was only
found that eight had nits in their hair.
The scheme for the evacuation of expectant mothers, in order
that they can have their confinements in the quiet and peace of
rural surroundings, continued through the year. In this we coordinated
with the Lcndon County Council who have undertaken
the administration of this work for the London Region. Some
60 mothers were evacuated.
Curing the course of the year the Ministry of Health asked
if the Council would be prepared to release one of its Health Visitors,
Miss Brown, in order to undertake work for the Ministrv for the
duration of war and, in accordrrce with this request, Miss Brown
was released.
On the 10th December, 1941, Enfield's first wartime Nursery
was opened by Miss Florence Horsbrugh, C.B.E., M.P., Parliamentary
Secretary to the Ministry of Health.
This Nursery occupies a portion of the Suffolks School released
for this purpose by the Education Committee, and alterations have
been carried out in order to make the accommodation suitable for
the care of children under 5 years of age.
The Nursery is open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. and is designed to
care for 60 children. At the time of writing this report, the average
daily attendance was between 50 and 55.
All the children in the Nursery have been immunised against
diphtheria and, in so far as it may be practicable, against whooping
cough, and they are all receiving vitamin and iron preparations.
The conversion of a school wing into a Nursery has taught
us that there are many difficulties which may easily be forgotten.
In the first place, heating is a question of great importance and we
found that the heating of the Suffolks School was inadequate for
our purpose. Furthermore, heating was required at times when
the school was normally closed and to heat the wing in question
we had to heat a large proportion of the rest of the school. To
overcome this, it has been nccessary to install a special plant at
considerable cost, and at the time of writing this report, this new
scheme was not yet in operation.
The hot water system again was found insufficient and the
new heating plant will deal with this as well.
Inadequate lavatory accommodation, or rather accommodation
of unsuitable type, was a difficulty that had still to be overcome
at the end of the year.