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125
BENTON SCHOOL AND CEREBRAL PALSY UNIT.
Dr. D. M. B. Gross, Medical Officer in Charge, reports as follows:—
"The big event of the year has been the preparation for opening
the new Ethel Davis School for the physically handicapped which
will incorporate both schools. The removal took place during the
Christmas holidays and the children came in at the beginning of
January 1964.
While work in both schools continued normally until the end of
the summer term, the autumn term was increasingly taken up with
planning and preparing the removal. There were numerous consultations
with the educational staff and the architects and builders,
and many snags arose which had to be ironed out. This inevitably
effected the time available for routine medical inspections, though
special cases and problems were dealt with as they arose. In this
connection I should like to thank the administrative staff of the
School Health Service for their unfailing help and support and for
the patience and good humour with which they met all the various
difficulties which were encountered.
As regards the actual work at Benton during the year, this has
proceeded smoothly with the maximum co-operation with hospitals
and consultants. The work at the Cerebral Palsy Unit also continued
along previous lines. Once the routine of the new school becomes
established it will be possible to carry out certain treatments on
the spot which hitherto have only been obtainable at the various
clinics throughout the Borough.
It may be remembered that in last year's report a plea was
made for a special vehicle fitted with a ramp and a tail hydraulic
hoist. We understand that this has now been ordered and that delivery
may be expected in the near future. Such a van will be of the
greatest help to staff and children alike.
The Staffing position has undergone two changes. Our two
physiotherapists resigned, Miss Bowers on 27th October, 1963 and
Mr. Morris in December with effect from January 1964. It is hoped to
fill at least one vacancy in the New Year.
There is, however, one aspect of the work which is giving
cause for anxiety. The school leaving age is fifteen, but in their
own interest children in special schools are legally expected to stay
on until they are sixteen to make up for schooling lost through illness.