London's Pulse: Medical Officer of Health reports 1848-1972
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Hints from the Health Department. Leaflet from the archive of the Society of Medical Officers of Health. Credit: Wellcome Collection, London
Willesden 1954
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Willesden]
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46
Christmas Parties.
Christmas parties were held in all the day nurseries, with a special tea, a toy for each child, and an
entertainment. Children from the Lower Place physically handicapped school gave a puppet show in both
the Longstone Avenue and Chichester Road day nurseries. The County Council gave 3/- a head for each
child attending the nursery.
Welfare Foods.
Since mothers find difficulty in collecting welfare foods from the various centres, arrangements were
made in August, 1954 to distribute welfare foods to mothers at four day nurseries. The matrons encourage
the mothers to take up these foods, and it also helps them to know which children require additional
vitamins in the nursery.
Staff.
The staff is based on one non-domestic for every three children under 2, one for eight children
over 2, but the total must not exceed one for every five children in the nursery. Two students are equivalent
to one trained staff.
Staff Establishment.
Supervisory Matron 1
Matrons 9
Deputy Matrons 9
Wardens 9
Nursing Staff 54
Students 14
Domestic Staff (part time) 36
The number of staff employed during the year varied according to the number of children on the
registers.
During the year 3 nursery nurses attended the Supplementary child care reserve course at Chiswick
Polytechnic and were later appointed as wardens.
Six nurseries are approved as training schools for the 2 year National Nursery Examination Board
course. The students attend Chiswick Polytechnic for two days weekly. Twenty students were in training
during the year and 8 of them obtained the N.N.E.B. certificates.
Table 1
Day Nurseries—Attendances
| Day Nursery | No. of approved places | No. of children on register at 31.12.54 | Attendances for the year | Average daily attendances | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0-2 years | 2-5 years | 0-2 years | 2-5 years | 0-2 years | 2-5 years | 0-2 years | 2-5 year. | |
| Chichester Road | 18 | 32 | 21 | 35 | 4,049 | 7,399 | 15 | 29 |
| Crest Road | 25 | 25 | 26 | 24 | 5,597 | 5,630 | 21 | 22 |
| Essex Road | 25 | 25 | 29 | 28 | 4,923 | 5,916 | 19 | 23 |
| Evefield | 25 | 25 | 13 | 20 | 3,716 | 3,949 | 15 | 15 |
| Gladstone Park | 25 | 25 | 28 | 27 | 5,073 | 4,365 | 20 | 17 |
| Longstone Avenue | 25 | 25 | 19 | 23 | 4,870 | 6,078 | 19 | 24 |
| Mortimer Road | 25 | 25 | 26 | 29 | 5,295 | 5,658 | 21 | 22 |
| Villiers Road | 25 | 25 | 27 | 28 | 5,228 | 5,765 | 20 | 23 |
| Wesley Road | 15 | 25 | 15 | 28 | 2,813 | 4,775 | 11 | 19 |
| Totals : 1954 | 208 | 232 | 204 | 242 | 41,564 | 49,535 | 161 | 194 |
| 1953 | 208 | 232 | 202 | 225 | 37,943 | 47,172 | 148 | 185 |
Table 2
Day Nurseries—Applications
Nursery
Applications
received
No. of children
left
No. admitted
Chichester Road
118
38
38
Crest Road
47
41
35
Essex Road
88
42
66
Evefield
42
28
35
Gladstone Park
76
27
45
Longstone Avenue
41
16
34
Mortimer Road
65
35
67
Villiers Road
62
51
66
Wesley Road
69
37
41
Totals
608
315
427