Hints from the Health Department. Leaflet from the archive of the Society of Medical Officers of Health. Credit: Wellcome Collection, London
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Stoke Newington, The Metropolitan Borough]
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The second portion of the survey was confined to a much more
detailed inspection of the possible cases of overcrowding, i.e., those
as in (iii) above, during which the rooms in the affected dwellings
were measured in order that Table 2 could be applied and any
further definite cases of overcrowding thereby ascertained.
(a) Preliminary Survey. (Form A.)
Streets or parts of streets, comprising 6,486 separate dwellings,
containing 12,149 families, were visited. For this purpose, five
temporary enumerators commenced duties on the 4th November,
1935, but owing to the London County Council desiring to hasten
the completion of this preliminary enumeration, two more
enumerators were engaged on the 18th November, 1935. The
services of these seven men were dispensed with on the 30th November,
1935, when the Forms A had been completed. In this portion
of the survey, 347 families were found to be definitely overcrowded,
whilst 1,464 families were possibly overcrowded. It will be noted
that each enumerator, on an average, obtained information
respecting 47.1 houses, or 84 families, per working day. The clerical
duties were undertaken by a Clerk, who was employed from the
4th October, 1935. Each enumerator was issued with a written
authority signed by the Medical Officer of Health, and in cases in
which difficulty arose, the tendering of this authority gave the
desired results.
(b) Second Survey. (Form B.)
In order to survey the accommodation occupied by the 1,464
possibly overcrowded families, three temporary survey assistants
were employed from 11th November, 1935, to 14th January, 1936.
Powers are given under Section 6 (3) of the Housing Act, 1935, to
serve a notice upon the persons concerned of intention to inspect
for the purpose of measurement of rooms, but it was decided that
owing to the large expenditure in postage and time involved, only
such notices would be sent upon a refusal being given. As a result,
it was only necessary to send notices to occupiers of 68 houses
instead of 1,252 houses. The London County Council requested
that all habitable rooms in houses containing one or more possibly