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throws more demands on staff, but gives them more identity
with the children and a greater understanding of them.
Details of attendances at the nurseries are shown in
Appendix 8.
Private Day
Nurseries and
Child Minders
During the year courses were run, designed to help proprietors
and assistants in Day Nurseries to understand and
satisfy the needs of the children for whom they assume
responsibility.
These courses, after rather an unenthusiastlc response,
became increasingly popular. A double result was achieved
through our contacts at every meeting. Firstly, we attempted
to put across the true needs of young children — the needs for
affection, space, good food and stimulating play. Experts in
child care led the discussions and gave most interesting and
useful demonstrations of different types of play materials.
Behaviour problems, physical and mental development, food
and nutrition, were all topics of discussion and time often ran
out before talk dried up. This, I feel, usually indicates a
useful meeting.
The second result achieved, was a better relationship with
people working in the "private sector* of nursery work. We
started to see their problems and try and solve them together.
It would be quire unrealistic to regard many workers in this
'human industry' as being vocationally inspired. They are in
it for what they consider to be a reasonable profit though of
course natural affection for young children is a basic personality
requirement for the job. Any advice we can give on true
economy in the nurseries, and by that I mean a transfer
of expenditure from, say, expensive commercially produced
toys to equally valuable and far cheaper alternatives is well
worth passing on. The improved relationship reveals Itself too
in the warmer welcome one receives when visiting the nurseries.
This, I feel sure, stems from the relaxed social atmosphere of
these evening meetings, when people are learning together
about their job; and our legal responsibility is replaced for a
time by an exchange of experience between people working in
the fascinating field of child development. It is tempting to
connect these new and closer ties with a remarkably uneventful
year in the exercise of our legal prerogatives under the appropriate
Act!!
At the end of the year 49 day nurseries and 29 childminders
were registered under the Act for the care of 2,229 children.