ABSTRACT
The transfer of responsibility for education from health to education authorities, achieved in the same year as the production of the White Paper, Better Services for the Mentally Handicapped, has led to considerable improvements in the education of the mentally handicapped. In spite of the various deficiencies in the educational system that mothers mentioned it was, of all the services, the one that had most impact on the families daily routines. Its contribution was two-fold in that the Childs attendance at school both relieved the mothers of the burden of care and helped the child to develop skills which would ultimately reduce that burden through his or her increasing independence. The role of the health services in the care of the mentally handicapped has undergone many changes in the past 50 years. The emphasis has shifted from a concentration on ascertainment and custodial care to assessment, treatment and community care.
