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WORKSHOPS.
37
Homeless Persons.—Each winter (at the end of January or beginning of February) the Officers
of the County Council take a night census of persons found in the streets. At the census of January,
1904, 168 persons (100 males, 68 females) were found "on staircases or under arches." At the census
of February, 1923, only 4 persons (all females) were found in such places. At the former census the
total number of "homeless" persons was 1,797, including 50 "young persons" (males, 1,563; females,
184), "in streets, on staircases and under arches." In 1923 the figures had fallen to 141 persons
(no "young persons"), males, 126; females, 15. In addition to the 141 referred to, 13,891 persons
were in common lodging houses, 400 in casual wards, and some 500 others in shelters and labour homes
not registered as common lodging houses.
WORKSHOPS.
Registration.—At the end of 1922, 1,152 premises were on the Register of the Department as
compared with 1,446 at the end of 1914. Last year 101 premises were removed from the Register and
99 added, making the total at the end of the year 1,150. The shrinkage in the number of premises
on the Register, to which attention has been called in recent Reports, still persists.
The 1,150 premises comprised 202 factories, including 21 laundries, 582 workshops, 6 "domestic"
workshops, 33 workplaces, and 327 premises or rooms occupied by outworkers working single-handed.
The total number of persons working in the 1,150 premises was 6,403, compared with 6,239 at the end
of 1922, so that although there was a reduction in the number of premises on the Register, there was
an increase (approximately 3 per cent.) in the number of workers. The workers included : Women,
2,999; young persons, 328; men (adult males), 3,076. The percentage distribution of the workers
was: Women, 46.8; young persons, 5.1; men, 48.0, which may be compared with the following percentage
distribution at the end of 1913: Women, 49.3; young persons, 7.4; men, 43.2. The reductions
(per cent.) in the actual numbers working in 1923 as compared with 1913 are: Women, 29;
young persons, 48 ; men, 17. It is somewhat surprising to find that the shrinkages in the less costly
forms of labour have been greater than that in the more costly (men). It might have been expected
that, with a view to reduction in cost of production, there would have been a greater (proportional)
reduction in the adult males working.
The Department reported the opening of 43 workshops to the Home Office, and received from
that Office notice of 27, 21 of which were already known to the Department.
Homework (Outworkers).—Local employers of outworkers sent in 42 lists in February, and the like
number in August, those lists containing 442 names and addresses, of which 360 belonged, and were
sent on, to other districts. From other districts 367 addresses within the Borough were received.
As usual, the majority of the lists of addresses were received from the City, Kensington and
Westminster.
At the end of the year there were 765 outworkers on the Register, comprising: Women, 380;
young persons, 117; men, 268, working in 425 workrooms.
Trades.—Dressmaking is the business in which the largest number of workers (1,660 women and
young persons) were employed, laundries coming next (548 individuals, of whom 59 were men), followed
by printing and bookbinding (451 persons, including 137 women and 19 young persons).
Supervision.—The inspections for all purposes made during the year numbered 2,309, and 33
rooms (new workshops, etc.) were measured. The Inspector found 38 workrooms in use as bedrooms
and 43 without the Abstract of the Factory Acts.
The Home Office reported 4 new workshops as having insufficient sanitary accommodation and
4 others in which the ventilation to the water closets was insufficient. In addition 1 other workshop
was reported to be in a dirty condition.
The Inspector reported that he found 245 nuisances on workshop premises, the majority of which
were dealt with on his verbal request. He served 30 notices (28 being "Written Intimations")
during the year. Of the 245 nuisances discovered 142 were due to dirty conditions, and 29 to defective
sanitary conveniences. On 6 occasions action had to be taken to secure the proper removal of gas
fumes from workplaces.
Infectious Sickness.—There were 42 cases of infectious disease on premises included in the Workshop
Register, 20 of them being outworkers' places, but only 10 cases in the families of the workpeople.
The diseases were: Chickenpox, 11 cases; measles, 10; scarlet fever and whooping cough, 8 each;
diphtheria, 4; and enteric fever, 1.
Bakehouses.—During the year 3 bakehouses (1 "level" and 2 "underground") were re-opened
and 1 ("level") closed, the total number on the Register at the end of the year being 67, of which 38
were factory bakehouses. The number of "level" bakehouses was 19 (12 being factories), and of
"underground" 48 (26 factory).