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On 1st March, 1921, the Council authorised officers of the Greenwich Metropolitan
Borough Council to act as infant fife protection visitors under the Act for a
period of one year extending to 30th June, 1922, and on 25th July, 1922, on the
application of the borough council, continued this arrangement until 30th June,
1923. The authority, which was subject to agreed terms and conditions and to
review at the end of the period, was discontinued as from 31st December, 1923.
The Council on 18th May, 1920, expressed the opinion that Part I. of the
Children Act, 1908, required amendment, and with that object made several
proposals † to the Minister of Health, but no definite action has yet been taken by
him thereon.
Lying-in
homes.
The Council s powers and duties with regard to the registration and inspection
of lying-in homes are described in the Annual Report for 1922 (vol. III., p. 104).
At the end of 1923, 277 premises were on the register, 50 were added during the
year, one registration was cancelled, and 44 entries were removed (owing to discontinuance
of user, removal, etc.), leaving a net total of 282 on the register at the
end of the year. Eleven premises carried on by registered medical practitioners
were exempted during the year. Under the powers conferred by Part IV. of the
London County Council (General Powers) Act, 1921, the Council on 1st March, 1921,
delegated to the Greenwich Metropolitan Borough Council its powers of inspection
of lying-in homes in that borough. This delegation—at first for one year and thereafter
for certain periods—was discontinued as from 31st December, 1923.
Midwives.
Under the Midwives Act, 1902, the duties of the Council, as the local supervising
authority for London, were chiefly disciplinary in connection with the conduct,
professional or otherwise, of midwives or persons practising as midwives in
London. To enable it to carry out these and allied duties the Council appointed four
qualified women medical practitioners to inspect midwives and to investigate special
cases. The Midwives Act, 1918 passed to amend the Act of 1902, enlarged the
Council's responsibilities, the chief alteration dealing with the provision of medical
assistance for midwives. By section 14 midwives are required to summon medical
aid in an emergency as defined by the rules of the Central Midwives Board. The fees
of the medical man so called in are payable by the Council (in accordance with a scale
fixed by the Local Government Board and amended by the Ministry of Health),
which has power to recover them from the patient, her husband, or other person
liable to maintain her, unless it can be shown that such person is unable to pay the
fees. Owing to the difficulty of assessing the sums to be recovered, the Council, in
1921, adopted a scale of assessments graduated according to net income, after
allowing a deduction in respect of each maintainable child or other dependant.
From 1st April, 1923, to 31st March, 1924, the Council's expenditure under this head
was about £4,100, of which about £1,100 was recovered. Further details of the
Council's work are given above (see p. 52).
Under section 5 of the Act of 1902, as amended by section 2 of the Act of 1918,
any adverse balance in the accounts of the Central Midwives Board is apportioned
between the councils of the several counties and county boroughs in proportion to
population at the last census, and the Council's proportion for the year 1923 was £429.
Notifications by midwives of intention to practise during the year numbered
* Partial.
† See Annual Report for 1920 (vol. III., p. 113).