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4
Town Hall,
Euston Road, N.W.I.
July, 1949.
To the Mayor, Aldermen and Councillors of the
Metropolitan Borough of Saint Pancras.
Your Worship, Ladies and Gentlemen,
Once again it is my privilege to report to you upon conditions of health and sanitation
in the Metropolitan Borough of St. Pancras.
This report, for the year 1948, is the fifth I have placed before you, and I hope within
its pages to indicate some of the improvements which have been achieved.
We have passed in this time from war to peace, but recent years have not been easy and
the work of reconstruction has been overshadowed by tiredness, shortage of labour and
material and the inevitable frustration and disillusion that awaits those who believe that
war always confers material benefit upon the victors. On the other hand our achievements
are by no means meagre, and it is pleasant to see new housing accommodation arising in
St. Pancras which, if as yet inadequate in quantity, is nevertheless commensurate in quality
with the ideas we nurtured during the war.
In my last report I referred to the fact that the new legislation did not relieve the Council
of its responsibility for the health of the inhabitants of the borough and of those who come
to work within its boundaries; that there is now a sharp division between the services aimed
at providing actual medical inspection and care, and those which, by improvement of
environmental conditions, prevent disease; and in this new clarification I trust that we
have been enabled to improve those services which are now our direct and sole concern.
There is, among others, one problem in particular which causes me grave concern, and that
is the care of the aged in the borough. Responsibility rests with various authorities for their
proper care. The hospitals must look after them in sickness, the local health authority is
responsible for their care when it is only the incapacity of old age which causes them to need
institutional treatment. It also provides Home Helps, a most valuable service. The
St. Pancras Borough Council must secure that the aged are adequately housed and may help
towards their feeding and recreation, as well as in their social activities. At the same time,
over six voluntary bodies are helping, either by home visitation, and/or the provision of
advice, food, social clubs, occupation, recreation and wireless.
It is the unfortunate lot, moreover, of the Borough Council to secure the removal of the
aged to an institution when they are incapable of looking after themselves and there is no
one to care for them. It is obvious that there exists a strong desire and willingness to help
the aged, but it is equally obvious that some definite central co-ordination is required. It is
essential that the Borough should know the total number of men and women over the age
on which they are entitled to retirement pension, i.e., over 60 for women and 65 for men.
The large proportion of these, probably 80 to 90 per cent., will need little, if any, help from
any external source. The remainder will need help in various forms. Some can remain happy
with a little help in the home, others will need provision of meals, many the provision of
housing accommodation in which they retain complete independence because the accommodation
is such that it relieves them from those duties and responsibilities and dangers applicable to