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49
midwives for this period supervising all those babies whose mothers
they attended, the health visitor being responsible for the supervision of
the others.
7. Before the war an enquiry instituted failed to show that there
was any clamant demand for the provision of day nurseries in this
district. The only nursery school in the area is that maintained by a
voluntary organization at Tyneholme. The first of the war nurseries
was opened here in 1942. At the end of the next year the number had
increased to seven. Apart from that at Vancouver Road, they have
been a success in that all places have been occupied, and this even when
admissions were in general restricted to children of whole time workers,
and usually only one from a family accepted.
The Council as Maternity and Child Welfare Authority could continue
to maintain day nurseries, providing this accommodation for
the reception of infants aged months up to five years. It is highly
probable that in some parts of the district and for some time such
nurseries could be filled, particularly as, being not war nurseries but
maintained by a child welfare authority, the criterion for admission
would not be the question of freeing the mother for industry, but the
interest of the child. So far from giving preference to those groups at
present favoured for admission to the war nurseries, preference might
even be given to the case where there is more than one child needing
to be looked after, and possibly too even if the mother engaged only in
part-time employment. Quite possibly though in some parts of the
area, the nurseries will be required not so much because the mother
has to go out to work, but to provide suitable surroundings for the
development of an only child.
An alternative to a day nursery maintained by a child welfare
authority is the nursery school provided by the Education Authority
which would cater for children of two to five years of age. It is felt that
an institution dealing only with children of this age should be a nursery
school rather than a day nursery in that its function is to ensure the
full mental development of the child, though at the same time adequate
attention is paid to his physical condition.
Even though it were known that any particular one of these buildings
at present used as a day nursery was to remain available, at the moment,
because the demand is so very problematical, no decision could be taken
as to the fate of any one building. There are certain facts to be borne
in mind when each case comes to being considered. A point in favour
of the day nursery is that it caters for children under as well as over
two years of age, and is open for longer hours than the nursery school.
In these ways it is of greater assistance to the mother obliged to go out
to work. They are also training schools for the nursery nurse. On
the other hand the acceptance of the very young at the day nursery
is a heavy responsibility, while caring for the very young is more costly
in staffing and equipment, a point to be borne in mind if there is a
shortage. The case for the nursery school is that it provides for the
more complete development of the child.
8. The increase in the number of illegitimate births has been
D