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dwellings, the main structure of which has become unstable, thus meriting
demolition under the authority of the district surveyor. These are
relatively so few in number that with the additions which have been and
are being made, the total of working-class accommodation remains as
a high proportion of other occupied dwellings in the City.
At the census of 1931 there were 22,536 inhabited houses in Westminster,
that is to say, structurally separate dwellings, containing a total of 33,056
private families in a total population of 129,579.
From the housing summary which was outlined in the report of 1930,
the number of working-class families was estimated at 22,740. Of these
6,933 were accommodated in industrial dwellings. It was computed that
some 11,993 families lived in houses let in separate tenements. These,
by reason of the absence of the self-contained principle, are not so acceptable
as dwellings, while some of them fall far short of modern housing
standards. A number of working-class dwellings in the City are in
cottage properties; some of these, as for example the Ecclesiastical
Commissioners properties in Garden Street, are structurally sound, while
others, such as those in Ross Street, Douglas Place, etc., are mostly worn
out, and by reason of general structural deterioration cannot be regarded
as fit dwellings. Some 1,510 families were estimated to be living in
cottage properties and in dwellings in mews over what were formerly
stables. The remaining working-class accommodation is found in rooms
over shops where they are sometimes combined as work places.
Industrial dwellings have now increased to 7,405, and it is extremely
doubtful whether any municipality in the country contains within its
boundaries such a high proportion of what are accepted to be satisfactory
working-class dwellings. When one considers that the City of Westminster
is not an industrial area but a centre of administrative, scientific,
business, banking and social life it should be conceded that the quota of
dwellings for the working-classes is far from meagre.
This does not imply that improvement in housing conditions is not
necessary. As already indicated there are a number of dwellings which
cannot reasonably be regarded as fit. Defects of structure, dampness
(particularly in underground rooms), overcrowding, lack of, or not readily
accessible modern conveniences are problems requiring constant attention
and from the succeeding paragraphs it will be noted that still further
progress has been made in effecting satisfactory improvements in those
conditions during the year.
In Westminster the housing situation implies a need for replacement
and improvement of old, unfit and unsatisfactory dwellings, So far as