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who for some specific reason may not be able to
attend ordinary schools. Five children were
provided with home tuition during the year.
No hospital special schools are provided at
hospitals within the borough but arrangements
are made for children to have tuition in the wards
at West Middlesex Hospital and Ashford Hospital.
Children excluded jrom school as unsuitable
No formal decisions were recorded under Section
57 of the Education Act, 1944 excluding children
as unsuitable for education in school, nor were
any reviews conducted under the provisions of
Section 57A or any decisions cancelled under
Section 57A(2).
Five children, however, were found unsuitable
to attend either ordinary or special schools and
these were dealt with informally. Similarly one
child dealt with informally was re-admitted to a
special school.
Medical and dental inspection and treatment of
children excluded from school as unsuitable
The medical and dental facilities are available to
the severely sub-normal children attending the two
junior training schools in the same way as for
those attending ordinary schools. A physiotherapist
attends each school twice a week to give
treatment to those children in the special care
units who additionally have severe physical
handicaps, principally cerebral palsy. It has been
possible to arrange for speech therapy at both
junior training schools for the treatment of selected
cases and to enable the staff to be instructed in
the constant use of speech therapy techniques.
Day Nursery
In some cases physically and mentally handicapped
children of pre-school age can benefit from the
training, sheltered atmosphere and the
companionship provided by a day nursery.
Where recommendations are made for such
admission for children over the age of two years,
the cost is borne by the Education Committee
under Section 56 of the Education Act 1944.
Eight such children were admitted to day nurseries
during the year.
School Meals and Milk
The provision of meals and milk in schools is now
firmly established. The milk supplied is pasteurised
and is given free. A charge is made for school
meals.
A check on one day in September showed that
of 26,965 pupils present in school 21,806 (81%)
had milk and 19,258 (71%) had dinners. There
are 46 school kitchens, and children are provided
with dinners by a container service at 25 dining
centres.
The number of non-maintained schools taking
milk was 13 and 82% of the pupils participated.
Further Education establishments were not
included in the check on this occasion.
Recuperative Holidays
During the year the Borough Council accepted
responsibility under Section 48 of the Education
Act 1944 for the maintenance of 23 children in
recuperative holiday homes. Nineteen were
admitted to such homes and 4 were cancelled or
withdrawn.
First Aid in Schools and Colleges
During the year several requests for advice on the
organisation and running of first aid courses were
received from schools and colleges in the borough.
A model for the practising of mouth-to-mouth
artificial respiration by intending first aiders was
obtained and loaned to teachers of first aid. It is to
be hoped that schools and colleges will provide
one qualified first aider for every 150 pupils,
students and staff. This is the same ratio laid
down in the Offices, Shops and Railway Premises
Act of 1963 for office staff.
Infectious Diseases
The following numbers of cases of infectious
disease are known to have occurred among school
children during the year:—
65