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6
The Board at first decided that they must meet at least once a week,
and did so on Thursdays at 6 p.m. This however after some time was
found to be insufficient and for five months an additional weekly
meeting was held on Monday mornings. If insufficient members were
present to constitute a quorum, then, provided there were not less than
three of them, they formed a committee "for the consideration and
despatch of matters of business requiring immediate attention." During
1856 there were 74 meetings of the various kinds and a Dr. Henry
Greenwood heads the list of attendances with 68.
The first step taken by the Board was to determine what officers
were required, and to allot their duties. At an early meeting a treasurer,
a clerk, a medical officer of health, a surveyor, two inspectors of
nuisances (also acting as assistant surveyors) and a scavenger or dustman
were appointed. The clerk and surveyor were both fulltime with
salaries of £200 a year. The duties of the medical officer of health were
to inspect and ascertain the sanitary conditions of the district, to point
out such causes as were likely to affect injuriously the health of the
inhabitants, and to indicate the most efficacious mode of preventing or
checking the spread of epidemics. He was required to make a report to
the Board on this once a month, or oftener if required, and his
remuneration was a fee of five guineas for each report. The duties of
the inspectors of nuisances were to include enforcing the execution of
the duties of the scavenger; to provide and keep a book for entry of all
complaints of nuisances (into the truth of which the inspector had to
enquire forthwith and report to the Board); to make, subject to the
direction of the Board, complaints before justices and take legal proceedings;
and to carry out certain duties as assistant surveyors. One of
them had to be resident in the village of Lewisham and the other in the
village of Sydenham and their salary was £80 a year each. The treasurer
was apparently an honorary treasurer, as an Alderman was appointed
who was required to invest £1,000 in Consols as security for the due
performance of the duties of the office.
After advertisement, Dr. F. E. Wilkinson was appointed medical
officer of health and Messrs. John Duncan and Luke Skeet as
inspectors of nuisances and assistant surveyors.
A lot of work appeared to be done that first year, much of it on
the drainage side, at the particular instance of the medical officer and
the inspectors of nuisances. However the report says that the complaints
of nuisances fey the inhabitants "are comparatively rare; the Board
therefore relying on their medical officer and inspectors of nuisances for
the efficient performance of this branch of their duties; the zeal of the
former is fully manifested in his reports." The inspectors during that
time laid before the Board about 150 reports of nuisances and the Board
had "every reason to be satisfied with the readiness shown by the
inhabitants to comply with their requirements." The first report of the
medical officer of health dated January, 1856 is very long and