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19061
200
It is with the greatest satisfaction that one can look back to the
administration of this Act in Islington, for here, unlike the majority of other
places, the provisions of the Public Health Act, 1891, as well as those of the
older Factory and Workshops Act, were carefully administered with the
assistance of two Inspectors, one a man and one a woman, whose sole duty was
to inspect workplaces where men and women were employed. Consequently
when with the Act of 1901 new duties and responsibilities were cast on the
Council, they found themselves in a very favourable position for executing the
additional duties that devolved on them.
The work of administration has been no less successfully carried out
during 1906 than in preceding years, and it reflects considerable credit on
every person engaged in the work, which, however, it must be noted, daily
increases. Indeed, during the year it was felt that it was impossible, without
the assistance of an additional Inspector, to pay the necessary attention to the
homes of the outworkers and the kitchens of restaurants, and consequently on
November 6th the Council appointed an additional Female Inspector whose
sole duty it will be to look after these places.
Inspections and Visits.—There were two Inspectors (a male and
female) employed during the whole year, together with one Female Inspector
from November 6th to its close, who together made 6,980 inspections and
re-inspections to the several workshops and workplaces in the Borough. This
entailed the necessity for serving 389 written notices on the owners and
occupiers.
The particulars of the places inspected were:—
Factories, including Factory Laundries ... ... 329
Workshops, including workshop Laundries ... 1.977
Workplaces, not inclusive of the homes of outworkers
... ... ... ... ... ... 257
Inspection of the homes of out-workers ... ... i»435
Miscellaneous re-inspections ... ... ... 2,982
Of the notices served, 55 were with respect to factories, 226 to workshops,
8 to workplaces other than outworkers' premises, 26 premises of outworkers,
while the defects found were want of cleanliness 414, want of ventilation 6,
overcrowding 30, want of drainage to floors 2, insufficient sanitary accommodation
30, unsuitable, defective, or foul sanitary accommodation 184,