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In his report upon the work of the sanitary inspectors during the
year under review, Mr. Walker, the senior sanitary inspector, states:—
"Although the year brought some decrease in the amount of
work done to dwelling-houses in the borough, the number of
complaints was only slightly fewer than in 1951. This decrease, and
the correspondingly smaller value of civil building licences issued
by the department, was due almost entirely to the decreasing amount
of war damage work to be done. Many properties have been
reconditioned, and as more become so it is likely that there will be
some fall in the number of complaints received.
"Apart from reconditioning after war damage, there is often
reluctance on the part of owners of older properties to carry out even
the minimum of work required to keep houses in habitable repair,
and this is reflected in the increased number of cases where legal
proceedings have had to be taken. It is well known, of course, that
this is due to the great increase in the cost of building work, and
the operation of the Rent Restriction Acts.
"The more dilapidated properties are as far as possible dealt
with under section 9 of the Housing Act, 1936. In many cases it is
found difficult to keep the cost of the work 'reasonable' and this is
only done in fact by very careful inspection and preparation of
specifications. The aim is to avoid demolition under section 11 as
far as possible so as to keep the greatest number of houses habitable
and in occupation."