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39
School Meals and Milk.
I am indebted to the Borough Education Officer for the following
details with respect to meals and milk supplied in school:—
Report on School Meals and Milk for the Year
ended 31st December, 1946.
During the twelve months 1st January, 1946 to 31st December,
1946, 1,332.304 school meals were served, an increase of 265,707
meals over the previous year.
The Education Committee have now two additional Nursery
Schools, formerly used for War-time Day Nurseries, Rowland Hill
and Pembury House, housed in pre-fabricated buildings taken over
from the Maternity and Child Welfare Committee, and some 65
children are catered for in each nursery daily.
In September the first complete pre-fabricated kitchen-dining
room was opened at St. Ignatius' College. This was designed to
feed 375 boys, but has, from its opening date, fed 550 per day.
In December the High Cross British Restaurant closed and the
School for the Deaf has now regained possession of the school hall,
which is also used for dining, and has its own small self-contained
kitchen as before the war.
Since August, 1946, milk became free to all children, but at
the present time only one-third of a pint per child is allowed each
day and this has had the following effect:
In October, 1945, there were present in Secondary School
4,998 children, of whom 2,414 had milk (48.5%), but of these
596 had two-thirds of a pint. In the same month there were present
in Primary Schools, 9,169 children, of whom 7,376 had milk (80.0%)
but of these 5,649 had two-thirds of a pint.
In October, 1946, there were present in Secondary Schools
5,542 children, of whom 4,968 had milk (89.7%), but none of these
had two-thirds of a pint. In the same month there were present
in Primary Schools 9,236 children, of whom 9,006 had milk (97.5%),
but none of these had two-thirds of a pint.
In other words, more children are now taking milk, but for
approximately 6,300 children the amount of milk consumed daily
has been reduced from two-thirds to one-third of a pint.