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(iv) Invalid meals.—Invalid meals for London is an Association
maintained by grants and voluntary subscriptions and is a specialist
service not to be confused with the Meals-on-Wheels service provided
by the Women's Voluntary Service or Salvation Army. Apart from
special meals for invalids the Association has developed a service
for elderly people, particularly for those who live alone and are so
frail that they are unable to cater for themselves.
The service is limited but approximately forty meals a day for
five days a week are provided to Paddington residents at a charge of
1s. 4d. for retirement pensioners or 1s. 8d. for those under
pensionable age but in receipt of National Assistance. The full cost
of a meal is 2s. 6d. Meals are supplied only on a medical
recommendation.
(v) National Assistance Acts.—Unhappily it was found necessary
to apply to the Court for the compulsory removal to hospital of
one person during the year. She was a spinster aged over 80 years
living alone in two rooms which were very dirty and verminous;
and when she became ill she refused to enter a hospital. A first
Order for three weeks' detention was followed by a second Order
for a further month and during this time her rooms were cleaned
and disinfested. The patient recovered during her stay in hospital
and was discharged home and is under the constant supervision and
help of this department.
(vi) General.—At the end of the year there were 314 (243)
names on the register maintained in the Department of old people
who are visited regularly. In addition, 57 (177) other elderly persons
were visited but it was not found necessary to place them on the
register. The two Visitors made 2,644 (2,635) visits and the Public
Health Inspectors 19 (15) visits to old people during the year.
WATER SUPPLY.—All drinking water in the Borough is supplied
from the Metropolitan Water Board's mains and the Director
of Water Examination (E. Windle Taylor, M.A., M.D., D.P.H.)
has kindly supplied the following report and figures.
The water supply to your area has been of satisfactory hygienic
quality and adequate in quantity during the year 1960. It is derived
from the non-tidal portion of the River Thames, stored in the Board's
reservoirs in the Thames Valley and filtered and chlorinated at the
Board's works at Ashford Common and Barn Elms. The water is
not plumbo-solvent and there were no important extensions to
mains nor changes in the general scheme of supply. The length
of new mains laid in your Borough was only 176 yards. All repaired
and new mains are disinfected with chlorine before being returned
to service.
Chemical Examination
Number of samples 207
Ammonia nitrogen 0.024
Albuminoid nitrogen 0.082
Oxidised nitrogen (Nitrate) 4.0
Chlorides as C1 28
Oxygen abstracted from permanganate
(four hours at 27 °C.) 1.22
Turbidity units 0.4