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
London County Council 1922
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for London County Council]
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39
While the London population, adjusted to allow for those absent on holidays
at the date of the census, was much the same in 1921 as in 1911, the number of
families had increased. If the allocation of rooms in 1-9 roomed tenements be
regarded from the point of view of the family it is found that families consisting of
more than two persons, which comprise five-sixths of the tenement population,
had less space per head in 1921 than in 1911; notwithstanding this fact the general
distribution of the available accommodation is better than in 1911 from the point
of view of overcrowding.
The following table shows the changes which have taken place in the occupancy of 1-4 roomed tenements in London during the past four censuses:—
| Tenement of | Percentage of total tenements. | Percentage of total population living in tenements occupied by more than two persons per room. | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1891. | 1901. | 1911. | 1921. | 1891. | 1901. | 1911. | 1921. | |
| 1 room | 9.2 | 14.7 | 13.5 | 13.2 | 5.10 | 3.26 | 2.58 | 2.31 |
| 16.4 | 19.8 | 19.2 | 21.1 | 7.84 | 6.54 | 6.14 | 5.50 | |
| 3 rooms | 15.8 | 17.8 | 21.4 | 23.5 | 4.57 | 4.14 | 4.93 | 4.66 |
| 4 rooms | 14.1 | 13.7 | 16.1 | 18.0 | 2.19 | 2.07 | 2.40 | 2.29 |
| 1-4 rooms | 55.5 | 66.0 | 70.2 | 75.8 | 19.70 | 16.01 | 16.05 | 14.76 |
The proportion of the private family population of the county and of each metropolitan borough living in tenements with more than two persons per room in 1911 and 1921 is shown in the following table, in which the boroughs are arranged in topographical order to facilitate comparison:—
| Metropolitan boroughs. | Percentage of total private family population living in tenements occupied by more than two persons per room. | Metropolitan boroughs. | Percentage of total private family population living in tenements occupied by more than two persons per room. | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1911. | 1921. | 1911. | 1921. | ||
| Paddington | 16.2 | 15.4 | Shoreditch | 36.6 | 32.0 |
| Kensington | 17.1 | 16.7 | Bethnal Green | 33.2 | 27.8 |
| Hammersmith | 14.2 | 13.8 | Stepney | 34.9 | 29.0 |
| Fulham | 14.6 | 13.1 | Poplar | 20.6 | 21.2 |
| Chelsea | 14.9 | 13.7 | |||
| Westminster, City of | 12.9 | 10.1 | |||
| Southwark | 25.8 | 23.5 | |||
| St. Marylebone | 20.7 | 17.9 | Bermondsey | 23.4 | 23.2 |
| Hampstead | 7.1 | 6.5 | Lambeth | 13.6 | 12.7 |
| St. Pancras | 25.5 | 22.4 | Battersea | 13.3 | 12.4 |
| Islington | 20.0 | 19.4 | Wandsworth | 6.3 | 6.8 |
| Stoke Newington | 8.8 | 8.1 | Camberwell | 13.5 | 12.8 |
| Hackney | 12.4 | 11.5 | Deptford | 12.2 | 12.8 |
| Greenwich | 12.1 | 13.8 | |||
| Lewisham | 3.9 | 4.7 | |||
| Holborn | 25.6 | 19.8 | Woolwich | 6.3 | 7.8 |
| Finsbury | 39.8 | 34.0 | London County | 17.8 | 16.1 |
| City of London | 12.3 | 6.6 | |||
It will be seen that in Deptford, Greenwich, Lewisham, Poplar, Wandsworth,
and Woolwich, the proportion of population in tenements living more than two per
room has increased somewhat, but in all of these except Poplar the percentage is
below the average for London as a whole. It is a very striking fact that in the
majority of the boroughs there has been a distinct improvement in respect of overcrowding
conditions, especially in the central and eastern districts, which are largely
occupied by the poorer classes.