[Report 1930] / Medical Officer of Health, Darlington County Borough.
- Darlington (England). County Borough Council.
- Date:
- 1930
Licence: Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)
Credit: [Report 1930] / Medical Officer of Health, Darlington County Borough. Source: Wellcome Collection.
137/150 page 31
![This year has seen the completion of structural improve- ) ments to the existing building. The ground floor rooms have j been converted into open air rooms by the addition of a glass pavilion built along the South side of the house. This pavilion is provided with sliding doors which can be opened to allow of ' one side being entirely open to the air. Special heating arrange- ‘ ments have been installed so that conditions may not be of too rigorous a nature for the very young debilitated children. The ' new arrangement is ideal, as it allows of the children having even ' their mid-day rest—an essential and important feature of the H school routine—under open air conditions despite the inclemency I of the weather. One has only to see the children to realise that [ the delicate child, as well as the healthy child, thrives on an open- air regime. There is now accommodation for 90 children between the ^ges of 2 and 5 years. All children are admitted to the school for one or both of two reasons:— (1) Poor home conditions, overcrowding, tuberculosis, &Q. (2) Malnutrition with or without some definite ])hysical defect. An examination of these children six months after admission shows how they have benefited both physically and mentally from a period ot life under conditions where [wovision has been made for regular exercise and play in the open air, for suitable and well-balanced meals, and for regular ])eriods of rest and sleep in the recumbent position. from the medical jioint of view, one of the most important features of the work of the Nursery School is the early discovery, diagnosis, and subsc(|uent treatment of minor deficts. Many defects are treated very successfully by tlic School Staff, and for others of a more serious nature the facilities open to children of school age are available. It is interesting to note from a survey made of the heights and weights of over 90 Nursery School children of o years, leaving age, that the average weight was o\'cr .51)}. above the average weight of the Elementary School entrants of the same height. This I consider s]}eaks very well for the stamlard of nutrition reached by the Nursery School child. When one realises that practically all Nursery School children start with the disadvantage of poor environmental conditions and jihysical weakness, it is](https://iiif.wellcomecollection.org/image/b29149125_0139.jp2/full/800%2C/0/default.jpg)
