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As regards infectious disease in schools, there is close contact between
the officers of the Sanitary Authority and those of the Education Authority.
The former bring at once to the notice of the latter anything in the nature
of even a minor outbreak at a school which the school medical officers can
investigate at the earliest opportunity.
The Council's sanitary inspectors are required to visit schools to
inform head teachers personally after inspecting homes from which school
children, suffering from notifiable infectious disease, have been removed
to hospital, and also to acquaint the teachers as to home contacts attending
the same school. This is in addition to the written intimation from
the Medical Officer of Health to the head teacher as required by law.
At the following six schools additions or improvements were made to
the sanitary arrangements during the year:—
Buckingham Gate School, St. Martin's High School, Leicester
Wilfred Street. Square, (late
Millbank School. Archbishop Tenison's School.)
St. Anne's, Dean Street. Westminster School, Dean's Yard.
Westminster City School, Palace Street.
Rat Repression.—During the year 168 complaints were received and
investigated, 525 inspections being made by the sanitary inspectors.
The Council's rat officer visits premises for the purpose of investigation
and to advise owners and occupiers as to the steps to be taken to rid
premises of rats and to instruct them in measures of rat proofing.
At the request of the Department, the City Engineer's staff examined
the sewer connections of some 155 premises, of which 29 were found to be
defective and were subsequently repaired or renewed. In the course of
these examinations many disused "eyes" to the sewers were discovered
and were sealed off. Several complaints relating to invasion of premises
by rats disturbed in the course of demolition operations in adjoining
properties were dealt with during the year.
The staff of the Works Department have, in addition to laying baits
in the sewers throughout the year, treated six sections of sewers with
anti-rat gas.
During "Rat Week" a total of 13,876 baits were laid in the sewers
and 1,331 at the Council's depots, etc. The number of dead rats discovered
was small, but the baits were reported to have been taken freely.
Nuisance from Pigeons.—The member of the disinfecting staff whose
duties are concerned largely with rat repression and investigation of