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67
Orders so made under the Amendment Act are limited to a
period not exceeding 3 weeks and applications for extension of this
period must be made in accordance with the procedure laid down
in Section 47.
Persuasion rather than compulsion has always been the aim of
the Health department and although no advantage was taken of
Section 47 of the National Assistance Act, 1948, the following
procedures were adopted on the advice and under the direction of
your Medical Officer:—
12 Old Persons moved to Hospital
23 Old Persons admitted to L.C.C. Homes
Transported Meals for Old People.—The "Meals on Wheels"
service has been in operation for a number of years by the local
branch of the British Red Cross Society under the direction of
Mrs. Wigley. The Council makes monetary grants towards the
cost of transporting meals to the old people who are home-bound
and to certain of the Old People's Clubs in the borough. The meals
had been prepared at a London County Council kitchen but this
arrangement ceased on the 14th January when the County Council
kitchen closed. In anticipation of this event, arrangements had
been made with a local restaurateur from which the meals have
been obtained since the following Monday, 17th January. The
cost of the meals continues to be subsidised by the London County
Council to the extent of 8d., the old people paying 10d. each. A
good quality meal was produced for l/6d. but with prices and wages
rising generally, the restaurateur intimated in the month of May
that the price would have to rise. The London County Council
subsidy mentioned above is granted only on condition that the meal
does not cost more than l/6d. In order, therefore, not to jeopardize
this subsidy, the Greenwich Old People's Welfare Association
decided to make a grant to the restaurateur of a sum equal to 2d.
per meal.
During the year, an average of 42 home-bound persons had
meals delivered twice weekly and in about 15 cases meals were
delivered three or four times per week. The average number of
meals brought to the home-bound was 137, another 95 were delivered
weekly to the various Old People's Clubs in the borough.
The figures given indicate the popularity of the service and,
not unnaturally, demand is increasing. Ways and means are being
explored to supplement the existing service and these will almost
certainly involve the introduction or purchase of another delivery
van.