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All these houses are Incapable of being made fit at a reasonable cost and in each
case the owner has had full opportunity to submit to the Council any proposals for
their retention and to object to the action taken by the Council. The continued
occupation of these unfit houses is a matter of some concern especially as local
authorities are now asked to give special attention to unfit houses. In compliance
with the Housing Repairs and Rents Act, 1954, the Council has submitted their proposals
for dealing with unfit houses to the Minister of Housing and Local Government.
The Housing Department is kept informed of adverse housing conditions coming to
the notice of the Health Department and assistance is given in the assessment of
applications for re-housing where priority on medical grounds is claimed.
At the end of the year the Council was managing 3,260 Council houses, 105
requisitioned premises (including 5 rest centres) and 39 premises loaned to them by
the Ministry of Transport and Civil Aviation. During the year the Council approved
expenditure as under =
(a) advances of £403,605 under the Small Dwellings acquisition Acts in relation to
269 houses
(b) improvement grants of £5075 under section 20 of the Housing Act, 1949 in
relation to 24 houses
(c) repairs loans of £2018 under section 4 of the Housing Act, 1949 in relation to
8 houses
(d) repair costs of £621 under section 9 of the Housing Act, 1939 in relation to 7
houses.
BURIALS - Under Section 50 of the National Assistance Act, 1948, it is the duty
of the Council to arrange the burial of any person who has died in the district,
where it appears that there are no suitable arrangements for the disposal of the body.
During 1955, three burials were arranged in accordance with this section.
PUBLIC MORTUARY - The public mortuary is situated in the grounds of Holy Trinity
Church. The premises are out-of-date and unsuitable for post-mortem examinations or
the retention of a body for other than a very short time, so by arrangement with
Acton Borough Council and the Coroner, bodies are taken direct to or transferred to
Acton Mortuary. The Council pays a proportion of the cost of maintenance of the
Acton Mortuary.
MEDICAL EXAMINATION OF STAFF - For superannuation or other purposes 30 members
of the Council's staff were referred to the Health Department for medical examination.
GENERAL MATTERS
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