View report page

17.7.5.2 The appointment of a social worker attached to the schools was of special
value in establishing the feeling of direct contact between home and school. Cases of
truancy, poor attendance and continual late arrival could be dealt with quite effectively.
Home visits were also made as a routine to new entrants to John Keats School and
Franklin Delano Roosevelt School, to give parents information about the school and to
answer any queries. Sometimes factors about the home environment might be of help to
the teachers in dealing with the child in school, or an account of the child's behaviour in
school might be of interest to the parents.
17.7.5.3 Developments in the future might include better communication with the teaching
staff by means of more discussion and regular meetings. There might also be improved
contact with the children in the school, especially the older children, some of whom might
benefit from casework support in their own right.
HEALTH EDUCATION IN SCHOOLS
17.8 By the end of 1968 agreement had been reached in principle and a convening
date fixed for the formation of a working party on health education in Camden schools,
with the object of formulating a suitable and effective health education programme. In
addition to representatives from the Health Department, membership comprised nominees
from the head teachers' consultative committee, the colleges of further education and the
I.L.E.A. Medical Department. Under the general guidance of the Borough's own working
party, which meets at regular monthly intervals, health education was carried out in
schools broadly under the following headings:-
17.8.1 I.L.E.A. Activities at individual schools, talks and exhibitions often with the co-operation
of the school nurse or health visitor.
17.8.2 Camden Monthly Theme was offered to schools as appropriate; for example talks were
given on smoking and health in twelve primary schools during July.
17.8.3 Co-operation on Specific Continuous Topics. One of the medical officers was invited to
give a weekly tutorial class on health education topics in one of the secondary schools
for girls. This arrangement is likely to continue. Again at a comprehensive school for
boys a series of talks on personal relationships was given by the teaching staff in conjunction
with the centre superintendent of the nearby family health clinic.
17.8.4 Sporadic Activity. School Nurses were often requested to give single talks on hygiene,
and school medical officers asked in an advisory capacity for information on topics such
as personal relationships, drug-taking and so on.
17.8.5 Parent-Teacher Associations. School medical officers were sometimes asked to address
Parent-Teacher Association meetings on subjects such as sex education and the care of
the primary school child.
17.8.6 Health Education Material. Posters exhibited in school medical rooms were renewed
regularly, and specific requests for individual posters were met as far as possible. One
particularly popular poster was a new one issued in September, 1968, 'Starting schoolhad
your pre-school booster?'.
17.8.7 Personal Counselling. Every school medical inspection session is in a sense a health
education session, with the aim of teamwork between the school nurse, medical officer
and care committee worker to provide supportive health education in school.

17.9.2 During the course of the year a campaign was launched to offer measles
cination to children aged one to sixteen years, with priority being given to those in the
4-7 age range. Parents were invited to take their children to their own general practitioner,
to the family health clinic or to special sessions arranged in the schools with
the consent of head teachers.
45