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June: "The general condition of the children remains good.
There are, however, a number of children with bronchitis, due in
great part to the inclement weather of the past few weeks. Five
children were absent—one with scarlet fever, one with tonsillitis,
one with a 'cold,' one away at a convalescent home, and one
away for no apparent reason."
September: "The condition of the children examined remains
good. Apart from two cases of scarlet fever and one of whooping-cough,
the school is free from infection. The large number
of absentees is due to the fact that the children are either with
their parents hop-picking or are away at convalescent homes."
December: "The condition of the children is not so good as
in the case of the three previous inspections. Many children were
found to have bronchitis of rather a severe degree, whilst more
were found with lesser degrees of bronchial catarrh. These conditions
were caused in great part by the longer period of unusually
wet and cold weather. The fifteen absent children are away
in consequence of bronchitis or heavy colds. Details of defects and
other information can be obtained from the quarterly reports."
During the course of the year fifty-three children were given
doses of a standardised brand of cod liver oil. These children
were suffering from subnormal nutrition, debility, bronchitis and
slight rickets.
The Headmistress, Miss J.E. Cass, attends at every medical
inspection. There is also complete co-ordination between Miss
Cass and the School Medical Staff.
Miss Marsden, the Dental Surgeon, reports:—
The Edith Kerrison Nursery School was inspected twice
during 1935, treatment following inspection.
Owing to the nearness of the School to the Clinic, the attendance
for treatment was very good. Only a small percentage of
children needed treatment, which is very encouraging.
This is very largely due to Miss Cass, the Headmistress, and
I should like to thank her for her great helpfulness in encouraging
the children to come to the Clinic.
I also have to thank Miss Cass for the following account on
the daily routine of the School:—
Every morning at 8.30, sometimes before, the 2-to-5's begin
arriving. Everyone begins by washing, a certain amount of
grime having accumulated on the way to School. Teeth are then
vigorously cleaned, mostly because it's such fun, although it has
other merits.
At 10 o'clock a mug of milk and a rusk help to stave off the
first pangs of hunger.
The shelters and garden offer almost unlimited possibilities—
grass to roll on, bikes to ride, the jungle gym to climb, while the
sand pit is even better than Southend. Very soon their mothers
won't recognise these bonnie pink cheeked children.
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