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able about these employers and keeps in close
touch with them.
The type of work chosen will, of course, depend
upon the facilities available locally, but
laundry work and packing is generally popular
with the girls and for the boys labouring and
cleaning with car firms, delivery work, gardening,
and warehouse work all come within their scope.
For those who are felt not yet ready for employment
a further year at school may be recommended,
or else advantage taken of sheltered
workshops or assessment centres provided by
the Mental Health department. These facilities,
however, tend to be used as a last resort, for every
effort is made first to get some occupation however
simple for the child. This is essential if he is
finally to achieve full integration with the community
and not remain for the rest of his life
segregated from the 'normal'.
It has been suggested (2) that the practice of
specialist youth employment officers for handicapped
school leavers be extended and their
services be made available to other youth employment
officers, in an advisory capacity. This would
result in the extension and development of the
existing training facilities, but in rural areas this
might be economically impracticable. As soon as
a special school is established in an area the youth
employment officers know what will be asked of
them and when the relevant information concerning
the child is supplied to them they are very
conscientious in their duty.
Very few leavers from ESN schools should be
totally illiterate and at Bedfont the average reading
age is between eight and nine years. They can
also generally deal with the practical money problems
up to one pound, but there are exceptions to
both groups. These may be children who were
admitted in their teens, or who have been very
poor attenders, but a proportion of them do have
specific learning difficulties. At sixteen they are
not, however, incapable of further learning, and
evening courses are arranged for them at a local
school alongside other types of evening classes.
These small groups are taken by teachers from
the Old School and so there is no break in continuity
for the pupils, and surprising improvements
are achieved when reading and money
matters assume greater practical importance in
their working lives.
There is always a small proportion of children
who are 'in care' with the children's department
and these always have problems that are peculiar
to themselves. Their early history is generally
either very vague or quite absent and their lack of
roots often leads to additional behaviour problems.
Wherever possible the children's home will
be unchanged when the child starts employment
so that too many changes do not occur simultaneously.
This always has fewer problems with
girls than boys for they more easily fit in with the
house mother and her female staff who help with
the younger children. Hostels provided for ESN
leavers may be many miles away from the school
so if the child is moved he is put into a completely
new environment with new faces and the new
situation of work, and with no contact with
people or places familiar to him. It is really
hardly surprising then that delinquent tendencies
emerge after such changes.
It is so often found that an adolescent with
quite limited ability but with a stable and sympathetic
home environment will succeed and remain
in a single job and eventually become selfsupporting.
A relatively less dull boy with a poor
deprived home, however, may pass through
innumerable situations, eventually becoming
work-shy and turning delinquent. Once an ESN
child gets into court the chances of him going into
residential care—ie an MD hospital, are very high
and naturally the chances of a child already in a
hostel are even greater. The dice then are really
loaded against him.
Birmingham was the pioneer of after-care for
the ESN child, for their committee has been in
existence since 1901. All leavers are placed under
either voluntary or statutory supervision and this
is effected by an after-care officer and social
workers until the age of twenty-one is reached.
After this any cases still requiring support are
handed on to the mental health committee and its
officers. These arrangements were initiated because
it was realised that the most difficult years
for the school leaver were those immediately
after leaving school. Although no such committee
exists at Bedfont there has been long established
a youth club.for the school where informal supervision
can occur. It is situated about two miles
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