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15
Notification of Births.—By Sec. 22 (3) of the
National Health Service Act, 1946, which came into
operation on the 5th July, 1948, the Local Health
Authority (i.e. for this area the London County Council)
became the designated authority to whom all births
are now required to be notified. As from the appointed
day the Medical Officer of Health ceased to receive the
actual notifications from the father or other person
responsible but has received from the County Council
a weekly return which has enabled statistics of live and
still births to be given for the complete calendar year.
The following table shows that 1,146 live births and 26
stillbirths were notified during the year and allocated to
Bethnal Green, these being corrected figures after
adding the inward transferable births and deducting
those which, although born in this Borough, belonged
to parents ordinarily resident in other Boroughs.
Male Female Total
1st half of year—Live births 326 317 643
Stillbirths 5 5 10
2nd half of year—Live births 258 245 503
Stillbirths 8 8 16
597 575 1172
In 61 cases the low birth weight brought the children
within the definition of "Premature infants".
Illegitimate Infants.—77 of the live births, and 2
of the stillbirths which occurred during the year were
illegitimate, the percentage being 6.7 which although
higher than the pre-war rate, shows a reduction on
1946. The Council has hitherto made a grant through
the Metropolitan Boroughs' Standing Joint Committee
to certain voluntary associations who provide the services
of experienced social workers for the welfare of
the illegitimate child and unmarried mother. On the