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71
epileptic pupils
The majority of epileptic children manage well in ordinary schools, modern education controls the
epilepsy and occasional fits in school can be dealt with without much upset.
In a minority of children convulsions are less easily controlled and special schooling is necessary.
Three Brent children attend Lower Place Physically Handicapped School and four are placed at Lingfield
School for Epileptics in Surrey. One child does not attend school and has home tuition.
maladjusted children
An increasing number of children are recommended for residential placement each year and at
the end of 1967 there were 95 Brent children in residential schools for maladjusted children. There is a
higher proportion of boys in this category, there being 75 boys and only 21 girls.
There is considerable difficulty experienced in placing some types of maladjusted children and many
schools may have to be approached before a placing is offered. This delay is unfortunate because the child
suffers.
There are proposals for a Brent Residential School for Maladjusted Children and this is very much
needed.
The list of schools where Brent children are placed is too long to record.
physically handicapped children
Lower Place Physically Handicapped School.
During the year 1967, the number of children in the school rose and by the end of the year there
were 110 children attending. 35 of these children were admitted during the year and 23 left. Of this number
8 were leavers aged 16, 4 were transferred to other physically handicapped schools and 6 were found
fit to return to ordinary school. The majority of children who attend Lower Place School are from Brent,
but the London Boroughs of Ealing, Harrow, Barnet and Hillingdon also place children in the school.
An increasing number of children attending Lower Place are in the lower age groups. At the end
of the year 43 children were aged between 4 and 7 years, 26 between 8 and 11 years and 41 between 12 and
16. Increasing efforts are made to admit children after their fourth birthday and this throws extra strain
on the welfare staff as much more needs to be done for these younger children. Coupled with this is the
greater instance of more seriously handicapped children who may also have more than one defect. The
number of children with spina bifida being admitted to the school is rising. With modern surgery these
children survive where previously four out of five cases proved fatal in early life. Many of these children
still have quite serious physical handicaps.
Medical inspections are carried out every other week and children are seen every six to nine months.
Regular assessments are made of the children's progress and close liaison is maintained with the Consultant
Staff in charge of these children at the various London Hospitals. The Orthopaedic Specialist visits the
school several times a term and supervises many of the children. Any operative work that may be needed
is carried out at the Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital at Stanmore. Two full-time Physiotherapists
work at the school under the superivision of the Orthopaedic Specialist.
The Ophthalmologist visits the school and supervises visual defects.
It was disappointing for the school not to be able to move to its new premises at Grove Park in
September because of the delay in completion of the building. The new school offers spacious rooms and
beautiful surroundings. A hydrotherapy pool will enable the Physiotherapists to provide new means of
treatment. Increased accommodation allows the Speech Therapists, Audiometricians and other visiting staff
to have rooms free of noise in which to work.
We look forward to next year's report when accounts of the new school can be given.
Residential Schools for Physically Handicapped.
There are five children in residential physically handicapped schools. At Hatchford Park School in
Cobham, in Tylney Hall School near Basingstoke, in Hurste School, Whiteness Manor, Kent, in the Thomas
de la Rue School in Kent and in the Wilfred Pickles School in Lincolnshire. One child attends the centre
for spastic children in Cheyne Walk.
children with speech defects
Children with speech defects all attend primary and secondary schools except for 9 children who
are pupils at independent schools. 221 children are under 5.
In total there were 699 boys and 242 girls at the end of the year who have speech defects and
received therapy at school or at a Clinic.
Speech defects due to deafness are not of course included in this group.
delicate and diabetic children
There were 9 children in this category attending day schools at the end of the year. Two were placed
in Lower Place Physically Handicapped School, four at John Keats Open Air School in the Inner London
Education Authority, one at Hazlebury Open Air School in Edmonton and two at Wood Lane Open Air
School.
There are of course many more children in residential schools who are delicate than in day schools.
The atmosphere of cities is not a healthy environment for a delicate child and when a suitable age is reached
to leave home it may be best for the delicate child to be placed in a school out of London.