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Collections of books are maintained at three homes for old people, namely Westway
Park Old People's Home, Southway Close Home, and the Centre at 726/728 Fulham Road. These
collections are looked after by the Libraries' staff and changed from time to time as required.
The libraries have good collections of large-print books produced specially for the needs
of people with poor sight. This Ulverscroft series, as it is known, can be borrowed from any of
the libraries and is also supplied both to the permanently house-bound people and the old people's
homes.
The Libraries Committee makes a contribution to the National Library for the Blind
which supplies Braille books to the home for the blind maintained by the Council at Wimbledon,
and by post direct to blind readers resident in the Borough.
BATHS AND LAUNDRIES SERVICE
Baths and Laundries Department
The services provided by the Baths and Laundries Department, i.e. swimming baths,
private warm baths and public laundries, are closely associated with the work of the Health and
Welfare Department.
There is little need to elaborate on the health-giving and recreational advantages of
swimming, facilities for which are provided at the Council's three bathing establishments at
North End Road and Lime Grove both Summer and Winter and at Bloemfontein Road open-air pool
during the Summer months.
Every week-day from 9 a.m. till 4.30 p.m. as part of the school curriculum, children from
all the schools in the Borough attend the Baths in classes of approximately thirty for half-hourly
swimming lessons. They are taught by qualified instructors first to swim and then progress to
advanced swimming, diving and life-saving. 112,278 children from Inner London Education
Authority and private schools attended the Baths for lessons in swimming during 1966.
Following the school periods the pools are available to the public and every evening
large numbers of adults, teenagers and children take advantage of the facilities. On any hot
evening during the Summer the capacity is taxed to the utmost and queues wait to get into the
Baths for a swim.
An innovation which may be of interest is family swimming on Sunday morning when one
pool is allocated for family swimming only. It is surprising to see the large number of parents
who come with their children from one year upwards, to teach them to swim and to enjoy this
health-giving recreation.
From 9-10 p.m. each evening the pools are allocated to various youth clubs, institutes
or local firms and associations for club swimming. These club hours are in great demand and are
fully booked months in advance.
Although the demand for private washing baths has slightly decreased during the past
few years due to many new and properly-equipped housing developments, there is still a great
call for this service particularly on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays. Ordinary private baths and
showers are provided, whilst towels and soap are also available. The shower baths are particularly
popular with the coloured residents in the Borough who attend regularly two or three times a
week, which has helped to keep the attendances high.
Approximately 160 baths or showers are provided at North End Road, and Lime Grove and
the average number using these on a Saturday is 2,000. The number of warm baths given during
1966 was 325,717.
Laundry facilities are also provided at the North End Road, Sands End and Lime Grove
establishments, by which a full family wash as heavy as 201bs. can be washed, dried and ironed
at the very moderate cost of 2/6d. Full advantage is taken of these amenities, as proved by the
number of attendances which, during the year under review, was 137,323.
(98)