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 1913
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Kensington Borough]
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WORKING-CLASS RENTS AND RETAIL PRICES. BOARD OF TRADE ENQUIRY. TABLE XVI.—Index Numbers showing Comparison with London Districts in 1912 (London—Middle Zone — 100). Weekly Rents.
| Food. | Coal. | Coal and Food. | Rent | Rent, Coal and Food. | Weekly Rents. | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 Rooms. | 3 Rooms. | ||||||
| Inner Zone | 99 | 102 | 99 | 116 | 102 | 6/6 | 8/3 |
| Middle Zone | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 5/6 | 7/3 |
| West | 100 | 100 | 100 | 106 | 101 | 5/9 | 7/6 |
| Kensington | — | — | — | 106 | — | 6/0 | 7/6 |
| Outer Zone | 101 | 96 | 100 | 87 | 97 | — | 6/6 |
* Kensington is a sub division of the West District of the Middle Zone.
TABLE XVII.—Percentage Difference in Rents and Prices and Actual Difference in Weekly Rents between 1905 and 1912.
| Food. | Coal. | Coal and Fuel. | Rent. | Rent, Coal and Food. | Weekly Rents. | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 Rooms. | 3 Rooms. | ||||||
| Inner Zone | + 11 | + 17 | + 12 | — 6 | + 8 | - 6d. | - 6d. |
| Middle Zone | + 11 | + 16 | + 12 | - 4 | + 9 | - 6d. | - 3d. |
| West | + 10 | + 18 | + 11 | - 2 | + 8 | - 3d. | - 3d. |
| Kensington | — | — | — | - 2 | — | - 3d. | Nil |
| Outer Zone | + 10 | + 14 | + 10 | - 2 | + 8 | — | Nil |
Increase = + Decrease = —
Note.—The Rents for the above Enquiry were obtained with the assistance of the Council's Sanitary Inspectors in
the Kensington District, and the Board have supplied the Public Health Department with a copy of their Report.
The rise in the price of clothing, including boots, "has not been much less for the same quality of article than for
food, coal and rent combined" (p. xiii ), and is, therefore, about 9 per cent.
TABLE XVIII.— Weekly Budget in 1905 and in 1912 of man and wife with one child, earning, say, 30s., spending from 22s. to 24s. on food, coal, rent and clothes, and residing in Kensington.
| 1905, | 1912. | Increase ( + ) | Decrease (-) | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| £ | s. | d. | £ | s. | d. | Per cent.1 | Per week. | ||
| S. | d | ||||||||
| Food and Coal | 14 | 5 | 16 | 0 | + 11 | + I | 7 | ||
| Rent, two Rooms | 6 | 0 | 5 | 9 | — 4 | — | 3 | ||
| Clothes and Boots | 2 | 0¾ | 2 | 3 | + 9 | + | 2¼ | ||
| Total cost | 1 | 2 | 5¾ | 1 | 4 | 0 | + 7 | + l | 6¼ |
* Note.—The only figures in the above Table taken from the Report of the Board of Trade are those representing the
percentage increases in the cost of food, coal, clothes and rent.