View report page

60
Guidance psychiatric diagnosis is required, the cases are referred on to one of the two Child Guidance Centres.
The Child Guidance Centres themselves receive direct referrals from many sources other than the schools.
Children are usually seen in order of referral, although for urgent cases, this is waived. Reports for
the Juvenile Court are given priority and can usually be completed within three weeks. An increasing demand
on our service is that of investigation of children excluded from school. This is also given priority since the
children are out of school and are not normally re-instated until reports are received.
There are waiting lists for all aspects of the Service—educational diagnostic investigations, full Child
Guidance assessments, psychological treatment and placement in Special Schools, both Day and Residential.
At the end of 1972 there were 521 cases on the waiting list to be seen by a psychologist. This compares
with 394 a year earlier, and is the longest waiting list that the Service has known.
Staff
In April 1972 the establishment of Educational Psychologists was increased from 4.1 to 6, but by the
end of the year it had not been possible to fill this. During the year only four Educational Psychologists were
employed at any one time. We were sorry to lose the services of Mrs. Smith who left to go to Herts, and Dr.
Varma left the Service at the end of the year, after having had long periods of illness previously. Two temporary
Educational Psychologists, Mrs. Feuuerstein and Miss Sampson, helped by working for short periods
of time.
The Regional Hospital Board has been unable to increase the psychiatric time available to the
Service. The additional Psychiatric Registrar asked for previously did not materialise, and therefore the heavy
workload of Dr. Graf and Dr. Friedman, the Consultant Child Psychiatrist, has not diminished.
Mrs. Hopkins, Child Psychotherapist, left at the end of the year, and Miss Markowitz and Miss
Thompson began as sessional Child Psychotherapists, whilst still in training at the Hampstead Child Therapy
Clinic.
The establishment of Psychiatric Social Workers was increased from 4½ to 5 and Miss Dickeson
increased her hours to become full time. Miss Lee, Psychiatric Social Worker at the Kingsbury Centre left to
move to the Harrow Social Services Department and was replaced by Miss Van Erkelans.
Mrs. Paling, the Senior Clerical Assistant, who had worked in the Child Guidance Service for ten
years, died in September 1972. She had had long periods of sick leave in earlier years, but her death came as a
profund shock to her colleages. Both her conscientious work and her cheerful personality will be sadly missed.
Miss Bayliss, who had acted as Senior Clerical Assistant during the last few months of Mrs. Paling's
illness, left after her marriage and moved to Bedford. Mrs. Loflman was appointed as Senior Clerical Assistant,
and Mrs. Hammant joined the Service as a Clerical Assistant at the end of the year.
Premises
During the year there were modifications to the premises at the Kingsbury Centre, after the ground
floor was taken over from the Health Department. This Centre has sufficient space and is purpose built. The
same cannot be said of the Kilburn Centre. For the past 20 years this has been housed in a four storeyed,
nineteenth century terraced house. The conditions are cramped, and it is with great anticipation that the stafi
are awaiting the new Kilburn Child Guidance Centre which is earmarked for a site adjacent to the Kilburn
Maternity and Child Welfare Clinic.
Referrals
354 children were referred to the Child Guidance Centres in 1972 (see Table 31), which is about the
same as last year. As is usual, there were twice as many boys as girls referred. 240 children received some form
of regular individual treatment in the Centres.
The sources of referral (Table 32) shows that about a third were from medical sources, a third from
the schools, and a third from elsewhere. This is much the same picture as previous years.
Referrals from the schools for behavioural/emotional difficulties and problems are accepted only
after the parents have clearly given their permission. It is regarded as an infringement of parents' rights to
expect a psychological examination of a child without parental knowledge and permission. In any case, without
parental co-operation there is no easily provided remedy.
The reasons for referral (Table 33) give perhaps grounds for some disquiet. The proportion of referrals
in the categories of behaviour difficulties and anti-social behaviour now makes up three-quarters of all referrals.
This has been growing over the years, and it is now the highest ever. Clearly many such children do need a
full Child Guidance investigation, but this should not detract from the referral of children with nervous or habit
disorders, who just as much need investigation and help. Amongst teachers particularly, it is suprising how
often one still meets the response that a certain child does not warrant psychological help because he is not
difficult in school.
The largest category of children referred to the Educational Psychologists in the School Psychological
Service are those who are backward in school work.
Backwardness in Reading and Dyslexia
There are large groups of children who do not master a reading level which is commensurate with
their age. No doubt this is frequently related to a lower level of general ability than that found in an average
child. However, it is undoubtedly true that there are children who possess a level of general ability which is
average or above average and yet who are backward in reading. There can be many reasons for this, such as
eyesight or hearing difficulties, emotional problems absence from or frequent changes of school or poor teaching
techniques. Far too readily dyslexia is given as a diagnostic label, rather like measles or influenza, particularly
by doctors or parents. It is apposite to quote from the Department of Education and Science booklet "Children
with Specific Reading Difficulties": "The term 'dyslexia' has been very closely used in educational contexts and
we do not consider it can usefully be employed for educational purposes".