View report page

92
stood that the poorer classes are forced to accept accommodation to
accord in some degree with their means, while the fortunate possessor
of a spare room is glad to obtain a tenant for it to augment his perhaps
scanty income, while the position is further aggravated when the inevitable
increase in the family occurs.
"The problem of dealing with overcrowded conditions remains a
difficult one. Harsh procedure is out of the question, as in practically
every case the offender is the victim of circumstances, and no alternative
accommodation is procurable. It is sometimes possible to alleviate the
conditions a little by suggesting a re-arrangement of the sleeping accommodation,
and whenever possible this is done."
"The general standard of fitness of houses seems to be improving,
and there is a gradual recovery from the neglected condition of property
generally, which resulted from the War. The principal defects discovered
during routine inspection were defective roofs and rain-water gutters,
and dirty and dilapidated condition of interiors, the latter, of course,
more prevalent now than hitherto on account of the greater proportion
used as actual living rooms."
At the end of 1938 the position with regard to overcrowding in the
Borough was reported as follows.
(a) (1) Number of dwellings overcrowded at the end of
the year 343
(2) Number of families dwelling therein 343
(3) Number of persons dwelling therein 2,424
(b) Number of new cases of overcrowding reported
during the year 94
(c) (1) Number of cases of overcrowding relieved during
the year 277
(2) Number of persons concerned in such cases 1,643
The war years saw a great change in the housing situation of the
residents of the Borough largely due to enemy action, but also, not a
little by the fact that no new building took place during that period.
To deal with the new conditions the Council in November 1945 adopted
a "Points" scheme for the allocating of housing accommodation to
families inadequately housed, in order to provide a fair means of distinguishing
the most urgent cases. All applications for accommodation
were referred by the Town Clerk (Housing Controller) to the Public
Health Department for the award of "points" in relation to medical
factors, overcrowding and insanitary conditions.
In 1947 it was reported that some 1,811 families were rehoused.
It is interesting to recall how this was done and the following table is
included to show this.