IN DEFENCE OF PARENTS -
SIR,—As a member of the Education Committee of a large provinca city, which has had more than its share of air raids, I am as keel as anyone could be that school-children should not return to " target-areas." But having been consulted by a large number parents with regard to problems connected with the evacuation their children, I feel bound to dissent from those who insist that whole blame for the return of children from the reception.areas with the parents. Many town parents, accustomed to the excel standards maintained by progressive country boroughs, both in r to school-buildings, books and equipment and medical and den services, &c., have been profoundly shocked by the low standards some of the reception-areas which are tolerated by the Board ucation and the Ministry of Health. For instance, what is the right se for parents with a fairly gifted child, likely to win a scholar- p to a secondary school, who find the child receiving hardly any nous education at all in the reception-area? Should they sacrifice is educational future to its physical safety, or should they risk bring- g it home and give it its chance of winning a place on the " educa- nal ladder "? Again, what should parents do, who, on visiting the eption-area, find their child in an unsatisfactory billet and obviously offering in health as a result?
I know the " official " reply is that they should " make representa- ns to the proper authority " and everything will be put right. But officialdom " will have to speed up and improve its machinery ormously before this reply inspires much confidence in parents. t present there is far too much overlapping and evasion of responsi- ffity as between the evacuating authority, the reception-authority, e Board of Education and the Ministry of Health. My own belief that we shall never get satisfaction till each evacuation-scheme omes the direct responsibility of a joint regional committee, on hich the various interests concerned are represented. At present, hatever goes wrong is always somebody else's fault. It is perfectly true at the large majority—possibly 8o per cent—of evacuated children ye settled down well and happily in their new surroundings, but this oes not relieve us of our responsibility for the misfits, who compose, the aggregate, a very considerable total. R. ST. JOHN READE. Bristol.
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