HC Deb 20 July 1936 vol 315 c36
65. Mr. E. SMITH

asked the President of the Board of Education the number of children in the City of Stoke-on-Trent in the elementary, secondary, and the instruction centres, respectively, suffering from malnutrition?

Mr. STANLEY

Of 11,842 children in the Stoke-on-Trent public elementary schools submitted to routine medical inspection during the year 1935, 46t or 0.4 per cent., were found to be suffering from bad nutrition. These figures refer to children in the three prescribed age groups, which contain about one-third of the total number of children. In addition, a special nutritional survey of children of all ages was carried out in 45 schools during June and July, 1935. 10,204 children were examined, and of these, 47, or 0.5 per cent., were found to be suffering from bad nutrition. These figures do not include children whose nutrition was considered to be slightly subnormal. In the secondary schools only one child was found to be suffering from malnutrition. No information is available as to junior instruction centres.