MISS MeMILLAN'S NURSERY SCHOOLS. (To THE EDITOR OF THE "SPECTATOR,"]
Sra,—May I plead for help for the Nursery Schools of Miss Margaret McMillan, whose splendid work your readers are fairly well acquainted with ? They are not perhaps aware that the new Education Bill calls for the establishment of Nursery Schools throughout the land, where children may be trained up to the age of six or even seven years before entering the ordinary elementary schools. Nursery School teachers will soon be required in large numbers, but the Government have made no national provision for their training. They offer grants to private colleges, such as that under Miss McMillan, but no payments are to be made until the buildings have been put up and the teachers actually trained. In her efforts to moot the 7VVE demand upon her, Miss McMillan consequently finds herself in great financial straits.
Miss McMillan's open-air school is submerged by Vachers who wish to study her methods. For instance, the people of Bradford are talking of sending her forty students, and she is left without any immediate Government aid, and without any public funds from which she can draw. Her Majesty the Queen, with her fine perception of the needs of the coming time, has given a most generous donation, and Mr. George Cadbury has helped us withh-a gift of £50; but Miss McMillan needs at least £1,000 to carry on until she has trained enough teachers to earn the Government grant. She has already two or three hostels for the training of teachers, right in the very midst of the people whose children are being trained, and she has more than enough to do to keep pace with the actual training work without the anxiety of finance.
May I appeal to your readers for immediate donations to help her ? They can be sent direct to Miss McMillan, or I shall be glad to receive them on her account and to acknowledge them.—I am, Sir, &c., J. AL Deer. Aldine House, Bedford Street, W.C. 2.
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