§ Mr. H. Lawsonasked the Minister of Health how many children who had been attending the Amersham War-time Nursery have now been prevented from attending on the grounds that their parents are not war workers; what is the present number of vacant places in this nursery; and if he will give instructions that any places not required for the children of war workers will be allocated to other children who would benefit by attendance at this nursery.
§ Mr. WillinkI am informed that there have been six refusals of children on the ground that their mothers were not working. From the latest figures supplied at the end of December, 40 children are on the register of this nursery, which has 40 places. The average attendance in December was 31. Three of the 40 children had been admitted on compassionate grounds; 37 were the children of working mothers. As the hon. Member is no doubt aware, these war-time nurseries were provided for the children of working women and although permission has been given for the admission to vacant places of occasional cases of special hardship, for example in the illness of a mother, I could not properly agree to the general use of these nurseries by children other than those of working mothers.