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 1962
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for London County Council]
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Illegitimacy—
Table (iii)—
| Year | Illegitimate live births | Illegitimate live births as a percentage of total live births | Ratio London/ England and Wales | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| London A.C. | England and Wales | |||
| 1953 | 3,645 | 7.1 | 4.7 | 1.51 |
| 1954 | 3,615 | 7.1 | 4.7 | 1.51 |
| 1955 | 3,827 | 7.7 | 4.6 | 1.67 |
| 1956 | 4,434 | 8.5 | 4.8 | 1.77 |
| 1957 | 4,686 | 8.9 | 4.8 | 1.85 |
| 1958 | 5,343 | 9.9 | 4.9 | 2.02 |
| 1959 | 5,765 | 10.4 | 5.1 | 2.03 |
| 1960 | 6,530 | 11.4 | 5.4 | 2.11 |
| 1961 | 7,632 | 12.7 | 6.3 | 2.02 |
| 1962 | 8,835 | 14.1 | 6.6 | 2.13 |
The percentage of illegitimate live births has increased year by year for the past eight
years in London: nationally the rise in illegitimacy has been much slower, the London
percentage which was about one and a half times that for England and Wales ten years ago
is currently more than twice as high. One in every seven babies born of London ' residents '
in 1962 was illegitimate and the age of the mothers of these illegitimate children is shown in
table (iv) below.
Table (iv)—
| Age of mother (a) (years) | London (A.C.) | England and Wales 1961 % | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 1962 | ||||
| No. | % | No. | % | ||
| 13 | 4 | 0.1 | 1 | 0.01 | 0.1 |
| 14 | 11 | 0.1 | 19 | 0.2 | 0.3 |
| 15 | 61 | 0.8 | 104 | 1.2 | 1.5 |
| 16 | 147 | 1.9 | 168 | 1.9 | 3.3 |
| 17 | 239 | 3.1 | 297 | 3.4 | 5.4 |
| 18 | 388 | 5.1 | 440 | 5.0 | 6.7 |
| 19 | 508 | 6.7 | 603 | 6.8 | 7.3 |
| 20-24 | 2,780 | 36.4 | 3,254 | 36.8 | 31.8 |
| 25-29 | 1,714 | 22.5 | 2,017 | 22.8 | 19.2 |
| 30-34 | 998 | 13.1 | 1,112 | 12.6 | 12.8 |
| 35-39 | 581 | 7.6 | 610 | 6.9 | 8.2 |
| 40-44 | 186 | 2.4 | 196 | 2.2 | 3.1 |
| 45+ | 15 | 0.2 | 14 | 0.2 | 0.3 |
| Total | 7,632 | 100.0 | 8,835 | 100.0 | 100.0 |