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114
WELFARE OF THE ELDERLY IN GREENWICH
In the early days, despite the fact that Councils, as such, had
no specific powers in this direction, the Health Department at
Greenwich had always paid some regard to the elderly citizen and
his problems. Even in 1934, chiropody was made available to the
aged at one of the Council's Welfare Centres for a nominal l/-d.
per treatment. Indeed, since 1938 and especially during and after
the war, it has always been a duty of the lady Public Health
Inspector to investigate and, where possible, relieve the difficulties
being experienced by some of our older folk. Moreover, the Home
Help Scheme introduced in 1938 for the benefit of the Maternity
and Child Welfare services was, in 1945 with Ministry approval,
extended to our old and infirm residents and was one of the services
eventually transferred to the London County Council in July,
1948, as a going concern.
It must be remembered that the old people were the least well
provided for under the National Health Service Act and, up to the
time of its introduction in 1946, supportive services for the aged,
such as they were, were limited to those obtainable from church and
other voluntary organisations with tacit approval and not a little
"unofficial" assistance from the Council.
Voluntary organisations are responsible for much good work
performed unobtrusively and unsolicited, but more often than not,
they suffer from a lack of funds. However, the multiplicity of
agencies concerned directly and indirectly with the welfare of the
aged and infirm indicated as early as 1950 that some co-ordination
was not only desirable, but essential if maximum benefits were to
be made available to the elderly. This was, in a large measure,
achieved in 1954 with the formation of the Greenwich Old People's
Welfare Association. This body was a reconstitution of the previous
Old People's Welfare Committee. It was brought into being not
only for the purpose of providing equitable representation between
voluntary associations with interest in elderly persons and the
elected members of the Borough Council, but so that the resources
of the Council and the services of the staff of the Health Department
should be made available for the efficient administration of
the many schemes which have been developed subsequently.
During 1945, hot midday meals obtained from a London
County Council Restaurant kitchen were being distributed in the
area by the British Red Cross Society. For practical reasons the
numbers were limited to 25 daily although meals in bulk were being
delivered to one old people's club in Swallowfield Road. Section
31 of the National Assistance Act, 1948, although specifically
precluding active participation by the Council, enabled it to make