§ MR. GEOFFREY DRAGE (Derby)I beg to ask the President of the Local Government Board whether he has come to any decision on the subject of the Report of the Departmental Committee on Poor Law Schools which he can conveniently communicate to the House?
§ THE PRESIDENT OF THE LOCAL GOVERNMENT BOARD (Mr. Henry CHAPLIN, Lincolnshire, Sleaford), who was cheered, on his return to the House after illness, said: I am afraid it will be difficult to reply fully to the hon. Member within the ordinary limits of an answer to a question; but I will make as brief a statement as I can. I have carefully considered the recommendations in the Report of the Committee on Poor Law Schools and have come to the following decision. We propose to avail ourselves of the powers we possess under the Metropolitan Poor Act 1867, 903 and to carry out the changes we contemplate by an Order of the Local Government Board instead of coming to Parliament. In doing this we give effect to some of the principal recommendations of the Committee. We propose to create a central body for the metropolis who will be responsible for the charge of certain classes of children. The classes of children for whom this authority will provide are:—(a) Those suffering from ophthalmia and ether diseases of the eye; (b) those suffering from certain diseases of the skin or scalp; (c) those requiring either special treatment during convalescence or the benefit of seaside air; (d) those who by defective intellect or physical infirmity cannot be trained in association with children in ordinary schools; (e) children who are remanded to the workhouse by justices before being sent to industrial schools. For these classes of children I am satisfied that special provision must be made, and the arrangement proposed will have amongst others the following advantages:—The provision required can be made by an authority acting for the whole of London at less cost than would be entailed by each district making separate provision for this purpose; it will greatly benefit the children themselves; it will render unnecessary the detention in workhouses of classes of children whom it has been the practice to temporarily detain there; and, further, it will set free some of the accommodation in the existing schools, a result which is greatly to be desired. The members of the central body will be elected by the guardians of the several unions, but not necessarily from their own body. The Local Government Board will also have the power to nominate members. A draft Order has been prepared for this purpose, and dealing as it does with a matter of great importance to the metropolis, I have thought it right to communicate it to the various boards of guardians and the managers of the district schools for their information, and thus to afford them the opportunity of making suggestions to the Local Government Board if they desire it. Much objection has been made to the massing together in one institution of great numbers of children and we fully concur in this objection. In accordance with the practice of the Board for some years past we are 904 declining to sanction proposals which would have the effect of extending the large schools in the metropolis, and we shall most readily entertain any proposals for applying to other purposes any of these large buildings, subject to other provision of a suitable character being made for the children. There are other recommendations of the Committee to which the Board are desirous of giving effect. We are in communication, through the Secretary of State for the Colonies, with the Canadian Government, with a view to arrangements for the more frequent visitation by officers of the Dominion of children sent out to Canada at the cost of the rates; and we have made special appointments of inspectors to inquire as to the prevalence of ophthalmia in the schools and also to the ventilation and warming of the rooms in these institutions as a preliminary step to determining the question of cubic space. Other matters, which can only be dealt with by legislation, are receiving the attention of the Board. I apologise to the House for the length of my reply, but it was impossible to make it shorter. [Cheers.]
§ MR. G. C. T. BARTLEY (Islington, N.)asked whether the other children would be left as now with the guardians?
§ MR. CHAPLINWe are not prepared to accept the main recommendation of the Committee, which was to hand over the charge of all children maintained out of the rates to a central body.
§ MR. T. LOUGH (Islington, W.)Is provision to be made for the various classes of children in a large institution or in small and scattered institutions, and if in a larger institution will not that tend to increase the evil?
§ MR. CHAPLINI have already stated that it has been the practice of the Board to refuse their sanction to any further extension of these large institutions, and it will be their course in the future.