View report page

1. The Good Neighbour Service, organised in conjunction
with the Home Help Service. Details of this are given
under the Section of the report dealing with the Home
Help Service.
2. Expansion of the Luncheon Services for the elderly by
opening a ninth Luncheon Centre at the Elm Park
Assembly Hall, and by providing transport to convey
residents in the Harold Wood area to the Luncheon
Centre at Harold Hill.
3. The Occupation Centre for the Physically Handicapped
which opened at the end of 1965, is now functioning
to capacity and the report on the first year's working is
as follows:—
The Faringdon Centre
The Faringdon Centre opened on November 1st, 1965 has
therefore completed its first operational year. The numbers of
registered permanently and substantially handicapped persons
attending have increased gradually which has enabled the staff
to develop and where necessary re-organise such things as the
workshops resulting from the day by day experience of having
increasing numbers of handicapped people working together. By
April 1.966, 70 persons were attending and since then the number
had continued to increase. By the end of 1967 it is expected
that about 200 people will be attending the Centre.
The social welfare officers from the Health and Welfare
Department are responsible for recommending handicapped people
to attend the Centre. They keep in touch with their clients at the
Centre and offer a social work service for those who have personal
and emotional problems.
Those attending at present have varying degrees of handicap.
The numbers of very severely incapacitated people needing
constant personal attention have to be limited at any one time
for various reasons. However, this range of handicaps enables a
wide variety of activities to be carried out thus keeping the
Centre a very lively interesting place. The main purpose of the
centre is to offer to handicapped people a place to which they
can go where some occupation is provided and where they will
meet other handicapped people. Many of those attending would
otherwise be home-bound; attending the Centre gives them an
opportunity to lead a fuller and more interesting life. The Centre
can fulfill a most important need for the individual handicapped
person in helping him to overcome and adjust to his handicap, in
building up his confidence, independence and self respect. The
way in which this is achieved is mainly by the attitudes of the
50