View report page

- 5 -
a small area of 0.41 acres between Kensal Road and the canal, to the west
of an area in Paddington of 3.6 acres which the County Council now propose
to zone as open space in place of the open space of 3.6 acres originally
proposed at the eastern end of the area.
The London County Council will be responsible for school extensions
and the provision of additional open space north of the canal.
This remainder is fast "ripening off" and it has already become
necessary for the Council to deal with a few individual unfit houses where,
owing to danger to health, it was necessary to secure prior demolition
before the main clearance area operations are commenced.
Legislation for dealing with badly-managed tenement houses was
greatly improved when the Housing Act, 1961 was passed by Parliament and
came into operation on 24th November, 1961. Parts II and III of this Act,
together with the Housing (Management of Houses in Multiple Occupation)
Regulations, 1962 will provide the Council with strong powers to deal with
those substantially built houses in Kensington which have become a problem
owing to overcrowding and congestion, lack of adequate sanitary accommodation
and absence of proper management.
The Public Health Committee are at the present time actively
considering the operation of these new powers, and it is hoped that good
use will be made of them in the near future.
Clean Air Act. The work of fulfilling the programme laid down
by the Council to make the borough "smokeless" was proceeded with energetically
during the year. The Holland Ward (No.2) Smoke Control Area
(against which objections were made by five ratepayers) was confirmed by
the Minister after a public enquiry, and came into operation on
1st October, 1961.
The Pembridge Ward (No. 1) Smoke Control Area, comprising approximately
110 acres and containing 2,517 dwellings and 342 other premises,
also came into operation on 1st October, 1961.
The Pembridge Ward (No.2) Smoke Control Order was made by the
Council on 27th June, 1961, and will come into operation on 1st October,
1962. It contains 2,629 dwellings and 303 other premises, and covers
83 acres.
The Norland Ward (No.l) Area will be made the subject of an
Order in the near future.
Thus, the Council's programme is being dealt with in accordance
with the scheduled times. Apart from the five isolated objections
received in respect of the Holland Ward (No.2) area, which resulted in a
twelve months' delay, the residents of Kensington, both owners and
occupiers, appear to be welcoming the Council's efforts to reduce atmospheric
pollution. The work is of a detailed nature and necessitates
numerous inspections to ensure that contraventions of the Clean Air Act
will not occur but, generally speaking, the initial difficulties in
operating this legislation have been overcome and there is no reason why
the work should not proceed quickly and smoothly to its finality.
Food Hygiene. The work of enforcing the requirements of the
Food Hygiene Regulations was continued throughout the year. Food traders
and the public are generally striving to maintain a high hygienic standard
in connection with the storage, preparation and sale of food. The
willingness of most people to co-operate in the task of ensuring clean
food becomes more evident as time goes on. Unfortunately, the need for
periodical inspections is still an urgent one, as is indicated by the
number of informal notices served (115 in 1961) by the public health
inspectors for various contraventions of the Hygiene Regulations and the
greater need to take Court proceedings against wilful offenders.
Public Health Inspectors. The Council have been seriously
concerned with the difficulty of maintaining a staff of Public Health
Inspectors adequate to carry out all the functions laid upon them by