Institutionalization of mentally-impaired children in Scotland, c.1855–1914

Abstract

This article examines two institutions which were established in Scotland specifically for the accommodation of mentally-impaired children: Baldovan Asylum near Dundee and the 'Scottish National Institution for the Education of Imbecile Children' in Larbert, Stirlingshire. It surveys the aims and agendas of the institutions in the spheres of residential childcare, mental health, and education and training. It compares the admission regimes of these institutions and considers whether they complemented one another in serving an unsatisfied demand for places, or whether they were in competition for admissions, staff and charitable support. The survey covers the period from the opening of both institutions to the implementation of the Mental Deficiency Act of 1913 which required the (re)certification of all children.

Interpretations of the Education (Scotland) Act of 1872

“…After a relocation to Colinton in Edinburgh, there was a move to establish a Scottish National Asylum in 1859 and this was promoted by the newly formed Society for the Education of Imbecile Youth in Scotland. The Society helped to raise funds and The Royal Scottish National Hospital was opened in Larbert in 1863 (Hutchison, 2011).…”

Accommodating “Imbeciles”or the “Weak-Minded”

“…Accommodating imbeciles in lunatic asylums or workhouses was increasingly seen as inappropriate: in Scotland, two institutions opened for children: Baldovan Asylum near Dundee in 1855, and in 1863 the "Scottish National Institution for the Education of Imbecile Children" in Larbert, Stirlingshire. Larbert received support from the Scottish Society for the Education of Imbecile Children (Anderson, Langa, 1997;Hutchison, 2011;Anon., 1862, 53-62). 10 In their efforts to retrieve the lives of imbeciles, historians have certainly benefited from the records of these specialist institutions.…”

Introduction: histories of asylums, insanity and psychiatry in Scotland

“… 1. For work specifically on the history of learning disability in Scotland, see: Anderson et al, 1997 ; Egan, 2001 , 2006 ; Hutchinson, 2011 ; Macmillan, 1998 . …”