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V ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH SERVICES
The Chief Public Health Inspector reports as follows:-
Slum Clearance
"Apart from a few houses, the Borough's 1966/1970 slum clearance programme has
been completed. A final survey of the Borough was made when it was found that there
are 1,612 houses and 889 flats which are considered unfit. The speed wi th which these
can be represented largely depends on factors outside the control of the Health
Department. There is an acute shortage of building land in Tower Hamlets, and it is
essential for one area to be completely redeveloped for housing purposes so that it
is available for rehousing families from the next area to be represented. Closely
associated with the shortage of land is the necessity often for each Pt. III area to
be considered in conjunction with a larger area for redevelopment, under Pt. V,which
necessitates programming and the representation in conjunction with the Borough
Architect and Town Planning Officer.
Common to other Boroughs, Tower Hamlets has its decanting probl ems which tend to
increase rather than decrease, but the effect here maybe greater than in some places.
It is a problem that even the computer cannot solve. Despite these difficulties, if
it i8 possible to maintain the progress of the last five years, hopes are high to see
the last of the slum areas represented before 1975. Just on the turn of the year news
of the confirmation of the Spitalfields area was received from the Ministry. This is
the largest clearance area to be represented and confirmed in Inner London. It comprised
589 flats in 11 blocks and 2 houses which are occupied by 1,413 persons in 549 families.
The Clearance Area is approximately 2H acres. ( It is estimated that decanting wi 11 take
about 5 years).
Improvement Areas
It is not easy to envisage improvement of dwellings on the scale indicated in the
Housing Act 1969 and in the guidance given by the Ministry in circulars. Trial areas,
as defined, just do not exist, and it may well be that the implementation of small
improvement areas would prejudice the slum clearance and housing programme due to the
work involved and the resultant little effect on the eradication of slum and substandard
property.
Secondary to this is the assumption that there will be only a few applications for
qualification certificates. Only one has been received in respect of a house, but 62
have been dealt with for privately owned blocks of flats. In the latter the potential
number is very limited as the majority of privately owned blocks of flats do not lend
themselves to improvement either economically or from a practical view point.
Overcrowding
The statutory standard has been in force since the Housing Act 1935 became
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