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(c) Child Guidance Service
Many clinics in the country have changed their name to Child and Family
Psychiatric Clinics to make it clear that the parents are given as much consideration
as the child. Sutton Clinic, although still retaining the old name, is also involved with
parents as well as the child or adolescent.
The staff of the clinic work closely with their colleagues in the Health, Social Services
and Education Departments, psychiatric colleagues in hospitals and with general
medical practitioners.
Educational psychologists working within the School Psychological Service are based
at the Child Guidance Clinic thus creating a closely integrated service.
Following diagnostic interviews, treatment may be carried out at the clinic or
referred for follow-up by the most appropriate agency.
Emotionally disturbed children in need of special schooling are placed either in
North Downs Day Special School or in residential schools for maladjusted children.
The teachers of North Downs discuss the progress of the children regularly with the
Psychiatrist at the clinic.
The number of children referred to the Child Guidance Clinic during 1972 was
175 (149). The number of families actually seen and treated at the clinic during
1972 was 190.
Full details of the work of the Child Guidance Clinic are given in Table X in the
Appendix to this report
The clinic is used by the Institute of Education (Diploma in the Education of
Maladjusted Children), Croydon Technical College (Applied Social Studies Course),
University of London (External Diploma in Applied Social Studies), Queen Mary's
Hospital for Children (Diploma of Child Health) Belmont Hospital (student nurses)
and Chiswick Polytechnic (Social Work Course), as a field placement for their
students who are supervised by professionally qualified members of the clinic staff.
Psychiatric Registrars come from nearby mental hospitals for a training in child
and family psychiatry.
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