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131
District Midwifery Service.
Under the Midwives Act of 1936 the London County Council
is the responsible authority for the provision of a domiciliary service
of midwives in the County of London. When the County Council's
scheme was inaugurated the Borough Council decided to retain the
services of the District Midwife as an independent midwife and also
the services of the private midwife who carried out relief duty.
By letter dated the 27th October, 1937, the Minister of Health
notified the Council that he would not be prepared to sanction the
extension of this service and consequently an additional midwife
could not be appointed by the Council. I have recently been
notified by the relief midwife that she is not prepared to carry on
indefinitely, and, indeed, is asking that she may be relieved of this
work undertaken for the Council at an early date. There does not
appear to be any possibility of finding adequate and suitable relief
for the Council's own midwife and the relief required by her in the
future will be greater than previously, because of the fact that,
whatever decision is arrived at with regard to the Maternity
Hospital, she will be deprived, under the Central Midwives Board's
new rules, of the services of pupil midwives who carried out their
district training under her supervision and gave her assistance in
this work. It will be realised that without suitable relief it will
be quite impossible for the district midwife to carry out her duties.
I recommend, therefore, that this Council's district midwifery
service be discontinued and that, subject to her consent, the London
County Council be asked to take Miss M. L. Thompson on their
staff of domiciliary midwives on the terms set out in their letter of
the 3rd September, 1937.
(Signed) G. MACDONALD,
Medical Officer of Health.
17th November, 1938.
(2) Report of the Borough Surveyor.
The property is situated on the east side of Bolingbroke Grove,
at the junction with Thurleigh Road, and has frontages of 211 feet
to the former and 218 feet to the latter; the total area is 1.119
acres or thereabouts. The property comprises two buildings known
as "Elmhurst" and "Westwood Tower," which were constructed
about 60 or 70 years ago.
When purchased by the Council in 1920 the buildings were
converted from private dwelling houses into a Maternity Hospital
and united by a communicating corridor at semi-basement level.
In 1929 an extension was built at a cost of £4,182.