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 1960
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for London County Council]
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Table (iii)—
| Year | Illegitimate live births | Illegitimate live births as a percentage of total live births | |
|---|---|---|---|
| London A.C. | England and Wales | ||
| 1951 | 6.9 | 4.7 | |
| 1952 | 3,607 | 70 | 4.8 |
| 1953 | 3,645 | 7.1 | 4.7 |
| 1954 | 3,615 | 7.1 | 4.7 |
| 1955 | 3,827 | 7.7 | 4.6 |
| 1956 | 4,434 | 8.5 | 4.8 |
| 1957 | 4,686 | 8.9 | 4.8 |
| 1958 | 5,343 | 9.9 | 4.9 |
| 1959 | 5,765 | 10.4 | 5.1 |
| 1960 | 6,530 | 11.4 | 5.4 |
The percentage of illegitimate births in London has shown a marked upward movement
over the last five years whilst nationally there has been a relatively slight increase. Boroughs
with particularly high percentages were Paddington (21.9), Kensington (16.8), Lambeth
(15.1), Chelsea (14.1) and St. Pancras (14.0). The only other large town in England and
Wales with an illegitimacy rate approaching that of London is Manchester, where there
has been a rise from 6.6 in 1951 to 9.3 per cent, in 1959.
A complex of factors probably accounts for the phenomenal rise in London—proportionately
more single women, a continuous influx of unmarried women, many of whom
are already pregnant, and the facilities which London can offer to an unmarried mother
in the way of anonymity, ante.natal care and support from moral welfare organisations.
Information as to the extent of some of these factors will only become reliably known
when the results of the 1961 census are available.
The table below gives details of women seen by the moral welfare organisations in the
twelve months ended September, 1960, from which it will be seen that 864 (26.2 per cent.)
were pregnant on arrival in London and that in all 1,426 (43.3 per cent.) were not British.
It should be remembered that these components of the illegitimate births are minima—the
moral welfare organisations do not deal with all unmarried mothers, though doubtless
they will tend to deal with proportionately more of the non.Londoners.
Table (iv)—
| British (U.K.) | Eire | European | West Indian | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Non.Londoners pregnant on arrival in London *Non.Londoners not | 424 (383) | 272 | (183) | 50 | (39) | 85 | (64) | 33 | (19) | 864 | (688) |
| pregnant on arrival in London Resident in London | 71 (93) | 87 | (96) | 8 | (17) | 33 | (20) | 3 | (6) | 202 | (232) |
| one year or more | 1,371 (1,270) | 454 | (455) | 76 | (85) | 267 | (236) | 58 | (39) | 2,226 | (2,085) |
| 1,866 (1,746) | 813 | (734) | 134 | (141) | 385 | (320) | 94 | (64) | 3,292 | (3,005) | |
* Had lived in London less than 12 months before making contact with moral welfare association.
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