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placed in an ordinary or special school, may well be provided with education under powers
conferred by Section 56 of the Education Act, either at home or in hospital.
A main object of the legislation was to ensure that parents are kept fully informed of the
significance of each stage of the procedure and of their own rights. To this end, the letter sent
to parents by the local education authority informing them that they will be required to present their
child for examination includes a statement of the duties and functions of the local education and
health authorities relating to their child's care, couched in friendly and non-legal language. In
this way unnecessary distress to parents may well be avoided.
When a child has been recorded as unsuitable for education in school, the letter sent by the
local education authority to the parents informing them of this now has to include a statement of
the type of provision which is likely to be made for their child's care. In order that this may be
done, the medical officer who has carried out the statutory examination consults the senior medical
officer for Mental Health, and their recommendation for the child's placement is included in the
borough school medical officer's report to the local education authority for submission to the
appropriate committee.
When the local education authority has decided to record a child as being unsuitable for
education in school, the parents have a right of appeal to the Minister against the authority's
decision.
The revised provisions also give to parents a new right to request a review by the education
authority of their child's case at any time after twelve months and this right may be exercised
annually thereafter. Should the parents stillreject the decision of the authority, the Minister acts
as the final arbiter.
Orthopaedic Clinics
Specialist clinics in both boroughs for children found to have orthopaedic or postural defects
have been very well attended throughout 1960. Such cases are found at routine school medical
inspection or referred by general practitioners. The physiotherapists have been at full stretch
to provide the remedial therapy and breathing exercises prescribed by consultants to the clinics.
InHornsey,Mr. E.G.M. Palserhas deputised for Mr. E.T. Bailey, F.R.C.S. on occasions and,
as the waiting list of new cases shows no signs of waning despite long and heavy clinics, the
introduction of additional sessions is envisaged in 1961.
The postural defects of teenagershas been the special concern of Mr. E. Hambly, F.R.C.S.,
the visiting consultant at Tottenham, and he also continues to supervise the orthopaedic cases
at the Vale Road School for Physically Handicapped Children. Of all such cases, few call for
more care than children with muscular dystrophy, yet patient and careful physiotherapy can do
much to render school life more enjoyable for such children. To this end, every help and
encouragement is given by the headmaster (Mr. Ives) and the teaching staff.