London's Pulse: Medical Officer of Health reports 1848-1972

View report page

St Pancras 1955

[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for St. Pancras, Metropolitan Borough]

This page requires JavaScript

(10) Making of iron and steel cables and chains;
(11) Making of iron and steel anchors and grapnels;
(12) Making of cart gear, including swivels, rings, loops, gearbuckles,
mull in bits, hooks, and attachments of all kinds;
(13) Making of locks, latches, and keys;
(14) Making or repairing of umbrellas, sunshades, parasols, or parts
thereof;
(15) Making of artificial flowers;
(16) Making of nets other than wire nets;
(17) Making of tents
(18) Making or repairing of sacks;
(19) Covering of racquet or tennis balls,
(20) Making of paper bags;
(21) Making of boxes or other receptacles or parts thereof made
wholly or partially of paper card-board, chip, or similar
material;
(22) Making of brushes;
(23) Pea-picking;
(24) Feather sorting;
(25) Carding boxing or packeting of buttons, hooks and eyes, pins,
and hair pins;
(26) Making of stuffed toys;
(27) Making of baskets;
(28) Manufacture of chocolates or sweets:
(29) The making or filling of cosaques, Christmas crackers, Christmas
stockings, or similar articles or parts of- articles;
(30) The weaving of any textile fabric;
(31) And any processes incidental to the above;
There are two types of outworker. There are those who take in work not
only for themselves but sometimes fo;r the whole family and other individuals.
Such a contracting outworker is really then a secondary factory owner and comes
under supervision, not only as a person employing outworkers, but also as a
factory owner. In this latter capacity the responsibilities of the Council will
depend on whether he employs power or not.
The other type of outwork is that undertaken by an individual in his own
home, and probably a better term here would be 'homework'. There is little but
good to say for such homework It fulfils a useful function, both for the
employer and the worker, and offers some people, especially the housewife with
one child the disabled and the elderly, a chance to add to the family income
and increase domestic comfort whilst working at times convenient to the
out-worker Weekly earnings vary according to the ability of the worker and the
time that can be spared for the work
There has been no evidence of overcrowding, and the conditions of the homes
appear to depend not on whether the women do homework but on whether they are
good housewives.
45