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
City of Westminster 1921
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Westminster, City of]
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| Particulars. | Number of Defects. | Number of Prosecutions. |
|---|---|---|
| Found. | ||
| Nuisances under the Public Health Acts:— | ||
| Want of cleanliness | 868 | — |
| Want of ventilation | 67 | — |
| Want of ventilation of gas stoves | 43 | — |
| Overcrowding | 14 | — |
| Want of drainage of floors | 17 | — |
| Sanitarv accommodation— | ||
| Insufficient | 29 | — |
| Unsuitable or defective | 507 | 1 |
| Not separate for sexes | 98 | — |
| Other defects / | 573 | — |
| Total | 2,216 | 1 |
| Offences under the Factory and Workshop Act:— | ||
| Illegal occupation of underground bakehouses | — | — |
| Broach of special sanitary requirements for bakehouses (included above) | — | — |
| — | — |
| Class. | Number. |
|---|---|
| Visits to Out-workers' premises | 1,207 |
| Matters notified to H.M. Inspector of Factories:— | |
| Failure to affix Abstract of the Factory and Workshop Act | 72 |
| Absence of means of warming | 2 |
| Matters referred by H.M. Inspectors | 182 |
| Workrooms measured | 238 |
| Underground bakehouses in use at the end of the year | 61 |
Ventilation of Gas Stoves.—Some apprehension by the users of gas
has been felt through reports that the quantity of carbon monoxide
therein had been increased, and that the gas was therefore more dangerous
than heretofore. It is satisfactory, therefore, to learn from the Chairman
of the Gas Light and Coke Company that the gas supplied in Westminster
contains no more of this dangerous ingredient than it did before the war.
During the war, and especially during the recent coal strike, the quantity
of carbon monoxide was greater than it now is. So long as combustion
is complete and there are no leakages, no danger need arise. If, however,
combustion is incomplete and stoves and gas burners are not properly
ventilated unconsumed gas may escape into rooms and have a deleterious