London's Pulse: Medical Officer of Health reports 1848-1972
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Hints from the Health Department. Leaflet from the archive of the Society of Medical Officers of Health. Credit: Wellcome Collection, London
Lewisham 1956
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Lewisham Borough]
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Table 26—
| Properties | Part of house | Present position |
|---|---|---|
| 39, Gilmore Road | Two rooms and scullery in semi.basement. | Notices served. |
| 42, Manor Park | Three rooms, scullery and WC in semi.basement. | Notices served. Further action postponed pending consideration of application for improvement grant. |
| 35,Burnt Ash Road | Two rooms and scullery in basement. | Found to be Crown Property — no further action possible. |
| 13, Recreation Road | Two rooms, scullery, bathroom and WC in semi.basement. | Notices served. |
| 53, Manor Park | Two rooms and scullery in semi.basement. | Notices to be served. |
| 24,St. Germans Road | Three rooms and scullery in basement. | Order determined. |
| 7,Wynell Road | Three rooms and scullery in basement. | Order determined. |
| 61,Westwood Hill | Four rooms, kitchen and scullery in basement. | Use of basement as private workshop approved. |
| 50,Lee Park | Four rooms in basement. | Order determined. |
| 45,Lee Park | Two rooms and scullery in basement. | Order determined. |
In his report upon work under the Housing Acts, Mr. Craven,
the group housing inspector, states :—
" It was again necessary to recommend action under Section 11
of the Act, 1936 (for demolition), in respect of a rather higher
percentage of the total cases of individual unfit properties dealt with
during the year. Although some of these cases were recommended
for demolition by reason of irremediable inherent and other defects,
many came into this category merely because the value of the
property, when compared with the cost of necessary repairs, was
considered to be low and the property therefore was not repairable
at reasonable expense. For all practical purposes the latter cases
were potentially suitable for action under section 9, and when fully
repaired they would provide reasonably satisfactory housing accommodation.
Fortunately it was possible in certain instances for the
inspector concerned to persuade owners to use the facilities now
available under section 5 of the 1954 Act and under the grant scheme
for improvements and conversions, thus saving some of these
properties from demolition.
" Inspections of houses included in the clearance area programme
for the years 1956/60 were begun. The selection of areas to be dealt
with and the order of priority was based on knowledge available in
the department in relation to degree of unfitness. As a result
preliminary work was completed prior to representation under section
25 of two areas, with a total of 35 houses."