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Fireguards
One (—) request for the loan of a fireguard was received from a family with 3 children under
5 years of age.
Unmarried Mothers and their Children
The Diocesan Moral Welfare Worker has advised and assisted 10 (40) cases during the year,
only one of these was a City resident. Three (—) mothers, all City cases, were advised and
helped throughout their ante natal period by the Assistant Health and Welfare Officers who continued
to support the mothers after the birth of their babies.
Welfare Foods
The sale of Welfare Foods continues at the Child Health Clinic, St. Bartholomew's Hospital,
and at the Health Department Office.
SECTION 23 – MIDWIFERY SERVICE
The Metropolitan District Nursing Association continued to provide domiciliary midwifery
services in the City. There were no (2) home confinements during the year. No request for midwifery
services within the Temples was made.
Midwives Act, 1951
The Corporation as the Supervising Authority for the City of London received 25 (27) notifications
of intention to practise from midwives during the year.

The Assistant Health and Welfare Officers, who are both qualified Health Visitors have
continued to held and advise mothers with children in all aspects of family health maintenance.
Closer liaison is being built up with the General Practitioners who have registered patients
living in the City. Regular meetings have continued for discussion and work allocation with
the two doctors whose surgery is within the City.
The location of the Child Health Clinic and the City of London Chest Clinic within the Outpatients'
Department of St. Bartholomew's Hospital enables the Assistant Health and Welfare
Officers to have close contact with many of the medical, nursing and social work staff. One
Assistant Health and Welfare Officer joins the Sisters of the Maternity Department in giving a
series of talks to expectant mothers booked for hospital confinements.
The links with St. Bartholomew's Hospital are growing. In 1968 it was a great pleasure to
receive both Departmental and Ward sisters from the hospital into the domiciliary field of the
Health Department's work and to plan special visits of observation for them. The sisters have
expressed their great interest and the benefit they have derived in seeing the services in function
and being able to ask questions at first hand will, they feel, enable them to help their patients
return to the community with better understanding of the provision of local authority health and
welfare services.
The number of children under 5 years of age living in the City at the end of 1968 was 79,
new births and new child residents numbered 36, but 42 children moved to other boroughs or
reached school age. Generally the health of the children has been good and no serious handicaps
have been found. Mothers frequently comment on the lack of safe play places for young children
and this may be the reason for the large number of families who move from the City.
Among the elderly members of the community there is a high proportion within the 80+ age
group. Many live alone and are handicapped by chronic disease, the main causes being heart
disease, diabetes, bronchitis, rheumatism and arthritis. Much help and advice is needed to help
them maintain their maximum standard of health and mobility. The Assistant Health and Welfare
Officers with the District Nurses devote many hours to visiting the older citizens to encourage
them and assess their needs for supportive services.
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