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(7) Conclusions:
The demands made upon the school psychological service continue
to increase, although the establishment for educational psychologists
remains the same. A newly establishment post of third psychiatric social
worker has recently been created and efforts are being made to recruit
a psychiatric social worker with an expressed interest in the school
psychological service. Both psychiatric social workers at the centre have
continued to work within the school psychological service when
commitments within the clinical service have permitted this. Pressure
of referrals inevitably tends to limit both the scope of individual investigations
and the time spent on remedial measures. Cases of extreme reading
difficulty have continued to receive remedial treatment at the word blind
centre, a most costly form of remedial teaching, and the need exists for
greater remedial teaching facilities in the Borough. Finance permitting,
it is probable that a start will be made to increase these facilities in the
next financial year. Plans are also going ahead for the provision of dayschool
education for maladjusted children.
The majority of children referred are of primary school age and
present a wide range of problems varying from educational difficulties to
character, personality and behaviour disorders. The limited counselling
service available to adolescents appears to be appreciated by clients, and
would certainly expand if more professional time were available.
HANDICAPPED PUPILS
The Local Educational Authority have a statutory duty under the
Education Act 1944, of ascertaining handicapped pupils in their area and
of providing for the special educational treatment of such children.
Ten categories of pupils requiring special educational treatment are
defined in School Health Service and Handicapped Pupils' Regulations.
These are as follows:—
(a) Blind Pupils, that is to say pupils who have no sight or whose sight
is, or is likely to become, so defective that they require education by
methods not involving the use of sight.
Number of blind pupils newly assessed 1
Number of blind pupils admitted to special schools during
the year 1
Total number of blind pupils in special schools for the
blind as at 31st December 1967 4
(b) Partially-Sighted Pupils, that is to say, pupils who by reason of
defective vision cannot fellow the normal regime of ordinary schools
without detriment to their sight or to their educational development, but
can be educated by special methods involving the use of sight.