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43
10 Macclesfield Road/President Street/Centrel street-26 premises
This area was represented during the year under the title of the
King Square (No.l) Area".
11, Buxton Buildings-28 premises
These flats were included in the agreed slum clearance programme
but on grounds of expediency each individual flat was made the subject
of a closing order representation.
As a result of the action taken during the year representations
have now been made in respect of all the properties scheduled in the
1951/56 programme agreed between the Council and the London County
Council.
Inspections
During the year inspections were carried out by the Public Health
(Housing) Inspectors of certain properties which it was felt might be
added to the provisional list of premises scheduled for clearance
under the Housing Acts.
Discussions continued with the London County Council during the
year on various aspects of slum clearance. The total number of house
to house inspections made in 1957 was 87.
Overcrowding
It is difficult to estimate the extent of overcrowding in the
borough-either overcrowding based on the purely legal standard or
what may well be considered to be overcrowding of families living in
cramped conditions necessitating the use of kitchens as bedrooms but
not legally overcrowded. Generally speaking, however, serious overcrowding
is much reduced and the majority of cases coming to the notice
of the department are invariably overcrowded to the extent of ½ to 1
unit. Forty such families were reported to the appropriate authority
during 1957.
Five new instances of wilful overcrowding came to light during
the year. In each case strongly worded letters were sent to the landlord and tenant. Two of the families eventually found alternative
accommodation and in one case the overcrowding was abated by the removal
of one member of the family. In the remaining two cases conditions
were ameliorated by re-arrangements within the households concerned.