London's Pulse: Medical Officer of Health reports 1848-1972
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Hints from the Health Department. Leaflet from the archive of the Society of Medical Officers of Health. Credit: Wellcome Collection, London
St Pancras 1925
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for St. Pancras, Metropolitan Borough]
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Ward Births and Birth Rates.
| Ward. | Number of Births. | Birth Kate. | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1924. | 1925. | 1924. | 1925. | |
| 1 | 613 | 597 | 16.7 | 16.5 |
| 2 | 490 | 444 | 21.7 | 19.9 |
| 3 | 679 | 671 | 18.5 | 18.4 |
| 4 | 510 | 480 | 19.1 | 18.2 |
| 657 | 591 | 21.1 | 19.2 | |
| 6 | 497 | 467 | 23.3 | 22.2 |
| 7 | 196 | 164 | 12.5 | 10.6 |
| 8 | 470 | 466 | 16.8 | 16.9 |
| Borough | 4112 | 3880 | 18.8 | 17.9 |
It will be noted that the fall in the birth.rate is general throughout the Borough, with
the exception of Ward 8, which shows a very slight increase.
1,175 births took place in Public Institutions equal to 28.6 per cent. of the total
births which took place in the Borough.
Table 5, on page 111, shows for 1925 the birth.rate of England and Wales, the County
of London, the Metropolitan Boroughs, and certain of the large towns having populations
exceeding 125,000.
Illegitimacy.
Of the 3,880 net St. Pancras births, 243 were returned as illegitimate. This
represents 6.3 per cent. of the total births registered during the year.
The figures for the previous ten years arc given in the following table: —
| Year. | llate. | Year. | Rate. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1915 | 5.4 per cent. | 1920 | 5.6 per cent. |
| 1916 | 7.0 „ | 1921 | 505„ |
| 1917 | 7.2 ,, | 1922 | 5.6 „ |
| 1918 | 9.5 „ | 1923 | 5.7 „ |
| 1919 | 8.4 „ | 1924 | 5.9 „ |
Notification of Births.
4,074 notifications of births were received during the year: this includes 133 stillbirths
and 3,941 live births, representing 96 per cent. of the births registered as having
taken place in the Borough. The Notification of Births Act (1907) states "information with
regard to the event shall be given to the Medical Officer of Health within 36 hours of the
occurrence of the birth of a child, alive or dead, which has issued forth from its mother after
the twenty-eighth week of pregnancy." This notification is in addition to, and not in substitution
for, registration of birth, which must be carried out at a Registry Office within forty.two
days of the birth.