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
Paddington 1927
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Paddington, Metropolitan Borough of]
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39
Housing Act: Rent Books.—Rent books at four houses were found not to contain the
required particulars. Cautionary letters were addressed to the landlords.
Rent and Mortgage Interest (Restrictions) Acts 1920-1925.
Three (3) applications were made, certificates being issued in all cases.
Housing on the London County Council Estates.
The arrangement made with the London County Council in 1924 still obtains. The
Borough Council recommends cases of urgency and special hardship for accommodation on the
several Estates up to a limit of 15 houses per 1,000 built, the quota for the Borough.
The following analysis of 500 of the cases awaiting accommodation on the Watling Estate, Hendon, will give some indication of the urgent need for the provision of further housing accommodation.
| Number in family, including Parents. | Number of Rooms Occupied. | ||||
| 1. | 2. | 3. | 4. | 5. | |
| 3 | 40 | 35 | - | - | |
| 4 | 48 | 60 | 38 | - | — |
| 5 | 28 | 55 | 31 | 3 | — |
| 6 | 6 | 39 | 12 | 2 | 2 |
| 7 | 4 | 23 | 15 | 6 | —, |
| 8 | - | 16 | 7 | 4 | 2 |
| 9 | — | 7 | 8 | 5 | — |
| 10 | - | 1 | 1 | — | — |
| 12 | - | — | 1 | — | 1 |
On the Becontree Estate accommodation can be obtained practically at once.
There is no "waiting list" for the Downham Estate, and the allocation of houses proceeds
slowly as far as the "quota " permits.
The Roehampton and Tottenham Estates are now filled. There is a "waiting list" for
casual vacancies in each case.
The "waiting list" for the Watling Estate is a very heavy one: the allocation proceeds
at much the same rate as for Downham.
In November, 1927, an agreement was completed between the London County Council
and the Borough Council whereby provision was made for the housing of 100 families on the
Wormholt Estate at Hammersmith, the Borough Council to pay the sum of £7 per annum
for a period of 20 years for each house provided.
The following Table shows the number of applications submitted to the London County Council during the year and how they were dealt with.
| Number Submitted. | Housed. | Offered— not accepted. | Refused by L.C.C. | Withdrawn. | Waiting. | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Becontree | 27 | 8 | 2 | 10 | 4 | 3 |
| Downham | 42 | 18 | 3 | 3 | — | 18 |
| Roehampton | 2 | 2 | — | — | — | — |
| Tottenham | 22 | 9 | 2 | 4 | — | 7 |
| Watling | 45 | 34 | 3 | 5 | 1 | 2 |
| Wormholt | 136 | 94 | 2 | 10 | 6 | 24 |
| 274 | 165 | 12 | 32 | 11 | 54 |
In addition to the above, 21 families were housed on the different Estates on applications
made previously to 1927. This figure brings the total number of Paddington applicants
housed during the year to 186.
The table refers to the number of applications forwarded to the London County Council
only; it gives no indication of the number remaining on the "waiting lists." It is well
over 1,000.
At the time of writing the Wormholt Estate, so far as Paddington is concerned, is completed.
It will be seen therefore, that the only Estates available are Becontree and
Downham, both of which are far removed from Paddington.
During the year 1,067 new applications were received by the Department and over 3,000
interviews were held.