§ Ms. WalleyTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what information he has concerning the incidence of head lice and nits in schoolchildren in North Staffordshire; and if he will direct extra resources to enable school nurses to carry out more frequent and regular inspections.
§ Mr. FreemanInformation specifically about the incidence of head lice infestation is not available. However, the following details relate to health surveillance by nurses in the area covered by North Staffordshire health authority:
Maintained nursery, primary, secondary and special schools Number of infestations1 1987–88 North Staffordshire health authority Number of pupils examined (thousands) 80.5 Number of pupils found to be infested (thousands) 2.4 Infested pupils as a percentage of the maintained school population aged 5 to 14 years 4.26 1 Infestations include head lice, vermin, scabies, ringworm, impetigo and verrucæ. Responsibility for the control of head lice infection among pupils rests with individual health authorities through the school health service. It is for them to determine the policy for dealing with this problem in the light of local circumstances. Many have stopped routine head inspections and are now adopting more positive practices through health education programmes and advice to parents on head lice infestation and how to deal with the problem. By increasing parental awareness cases of infestation can be indentified and dealt with more promptly.