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In 1905, Professor Kenwood was able to report the organisation
of small bands of voluntary Public Health Workers who were
to undertake:-
"1. Visits to houses in which a baby had recently been born
and where it is judged the people stand in need of advice.
2. Visits to houses in which an infant had recently died, in
order to discover if the cause of death was preventable.
3. Visits to houses occupied by persons suffering from
consumption.
4. Visits to houses in which cases of zymotic diarrhoea came
to the knowledge of the Medical Officer of Health,
5. To each visitor will be assigned a certain number of the
poorer houses in the district".
He also wrote that "it may be desirable before long to
supplement this work by the appointment of a paid female sanitary
inspector."
In this report he also advocated the notification of births
so that early advice might be given to mothers as to feeding and
care of infants, thus anticipating the Notification of Births
Act 1907, which was adopted by the Council during the year 1908
In 1909, the Council adopted the recommendation of the
Public Health Committee for the appointment of a female sanitary
inspector (the first female sanitary inspector in London having
been approved by the Vestry of Kensington in 1895). In his
report for 1909, Professor Kenwood reports the appointment of
Miss Aldridge as a salaried part-time health worker, who had
done much to assist the voluntary health workers.
In 1910, an infant weighing machine was purchased and it is
recorded that 11 infants were brought to the Town Hall weekly to
be weighed. The opportunity was then taken to supervising the
feeding, clothing and general care of these children by the
official health worker.
In the report for 1911, it is recorded that 71 infants were
brought to be weighed and the scale used on 341 occasions.