London's Pulse: Medical Officer of Health reports 1848-1972

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Hints from the Health Department. Leaflet from the archive of the Society of Medical Officers of Health. Credit: Wellcome Collection, London

Kensington 1924

The annual report on the health of the Borough for the year1924

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31
INFANT WELFARE CENTRES.
There are seven Voluntary Infant Welfare Centres in Kensington, and the Borough has been
mapped out into a similar number of areas with one Centre in each, an attempt having been made
to place each home in the area of that Centre most accessible to the mother.
The Centres are controlled by Voluntary Committees and two representatives from each of
the Voluntary Committees serve on the Advisory Committee to the Council's Maternity and
Child Welfare Committee. (The work of the Advisory Committee is set out on Page 41).
These institutions are mainly supported by (1) voluntary contributions, (2) grants from the
Ministry of Health, and (3) grants from the Borough Council. The medical and nursing staffs
are engaged by the Voluntary Committees. A Woman Health Officer is attached to each
Welfare Centre and, except at Campden Hill, has an office on the premises where she keeps
her records and in which she arranges home visiting work in consultation with the staff and the
Voluntary Committee.
The principal duties of a Welfare Centre are those of an educational institution—providing
advice and teaching for the mothers in the care and management of little children with a view to
maintaining them in good health.
The guidance and teaching at all Centres is both individual and collective. Individual advice
is given at the medical consultations and in the course of home visiting, collective advice being
given to mothers by simple class teaching.

Table: The work done at the Infant Welfare Centres during the year 1924 is shown in the following table:—

The work done at the Infant Welfare Centres during the year 1924 is shown in the following table:—

Particulars of Work done.Archer Street.Bramley Road with Kenley Street Branch.Campden Hill.Earl's Court.Gol-borne.Lancaster Road.Ray-mede.Totals.
1—No. of births occurring in the area of the Centre suitable for Welfare attention876441203393203482822140
2—No. of sessions at which doctor attended for infant consultations892009010098133150860
3—No. of sessions at which doctor attended for special ante-natal consultations21241211—2149138
4—Total number of individual mothers who attended during the year433730821923986884042927
5—Number of individual mothers who attended ante-natal sessions during the year45643153435893387
6—Total number of individual children who
attended during the year (Old)2664201081952692993131870
,, ,, ,, (New)190448911352683602931785
7—Number seen by doctor at consultations—
1. Ante-natal mothers611178212993195320997
2. Post-natal mothers24932283262574506762288
3. Children235550672019304624344369486024150
3—Average number seen by doctor at consultations—
1. Ante-natal mothers2.93711—9.76.4
2. Post-natal mothers2.81.6—32.63.44.5
3. Children262522302432932
9—Number of individual children weighed during the year4568641993305376596063651
10—Total weighings271566472019375544135544903534128
11—Number of first visits paid by salaried workers to—
1. Expectant mothers23150123413468150571
2. Children20511218254——454
12—Total number of home visits paid by salaried workers to—
1. Expectant mothers8718934881701354041107
2. Children17391327775146141981646276013906
13—Number of home visits paid to children by voluntary workers —
1. First visits—————28—28
2. Total visits—248———108—356

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The home visiting figures do not include visits paid by the Council's Women Health Officers.