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207
Total accommodation
provided.
The dwellings erected under Non-Assisted Schemes comprise 6,551 flats in
block dwellings, 3,148 cottages and 294 cottage-flats, providing accommodation for
57,047 persons on the basis of two persons a room. There are also the three lodginghouses
(Bruce House, Carrington House and Parker-street House), with cubicles
providing accommodation for 1,880 persons. The accommodation under NonAssisted
Schemes thus provided was for 58,927. Adding to this figure the accommodation
in dwellings under Assisted Schemes, the Council's dwellings and lodginghouses
provided, at the end of March, 1926, accommodation, calculated on the basis
of two persons a room for 149,726 persons. Schemes under which over 12,000
houses at cottage estates and approximately 2,500 tenements in block dwellings
are projected at Becontree, Roehampton, Downham, on the Watling Estate (Hendon),
White Hart-lane, the Wormholt Estate (Hammersmith), Castlenau, East Hill,
(Wandsworth), the St. Helier Estate (Morden), and in various slum areas to be cleared.
The work involved in the management of these dwellings, entailing as it does,
in addition to the normal work of management, such as the collection of rents and
the execution of repairs, the handling of a great number of applications for tenancies,
the investigation of the circumstances of the applicants, the rationing of accommodation
according to the applicants' needs, and the numerous other questions
inevitably arising in connection with the management of new estates developed
to meet special needs, has been out of all proportion to that associated with the
management of an equal number of pre-war dwellings. A considerable amount of
work has been created owing to the enquiries which have had to be made into cases
notified by the Metropolitan Borough Councils, as well as other possible cases of
hardship by reason of the applicants living in insanitary or overcrowded conditions.
There has also been a large amount of preliminary work in connection with the
development of proiected new estates.
Demand for
accommodation.
There has been no abatement of the great demand for accommodation on the
Council's estates. During the year a very large number of persons made inquiries,
both written and oral, as to the possibility of obtaining accommodation, and, being
informed of the position, did not make formal applications, which in the circumstances
would have been futile. It is undoubtedly the case also that many persons refrain
from making inquiries owing to its being well known that the Council cannot, in the
present circumstances, meet the requirements of the numerous applicants already
registered. It is indicative of the situation that the number of persons who called
at the central office during the year to apply for houses was over 67,000, an average
of 218 a day, while over 53,055, an average of 172 a day, were made by letter as to
the possibility of obtaining living accommodation on the Council's estates. These
figures represent an increase of over 16,000 persons calling to make enquiries and of
over 15,000 letters received, as compared with the numbers for the preceding year,
1924-25.
Allocation of
accommodation
between
residents of
different
boroughs
In October, 1924, the Council decided that, as an experiment for one year,
a part, not exceeding 50 per cent., of the new accommodation provided under Part
III. of the Housing Act, 1925, should be allocated amongst suitable applicants
recommended by the several Metropolitan Borough Coimcils in proportions based
upon existing conditions of overcrowding in such boroughs. The position was
reviewed towards the end of 1925, with the result that on 26th January, 1926, the
Council agreed to continue the scheme, except that in future the quota should
include families preferentially accommodated, otherwise than on the direct recommendation
of the Borough Councils. To a considerable extent advantage has been
taken of this scheme by the majority of the Borough Councils and under this
arrangement it has been possible to accommodate about 512 families at Becontree
and 301 at Downham, 8 at Roehampton and 3 on the White Hart-lane Estate.
The Borough Council concerned is notified periodically in ftll cases in which applicants
are accommodated on one of the Council's estates.
13651
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