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SEWERAGE AND SEWAGE DISPOSAL
Sewerage and sewage disposal in the City of London are the responsibility of the City
Engineer who has supplied the following information:-
"The sewerage system in the City is comprised mainly of ovoid shaped brick sewers, the
average internal dimensions being 4 feet high x 2 feet 8 inches wide, this size being adopted
only to provide access for sewermen, as the normal dry weather flow depth of effluent is only
about 9 inches at an average velocity of 2 to 3 feet per second.
The Corporation sewers discharge into the General London Council intercepting sewers which
flow eastwards across the City at a much lower depth to their Beckton Sewage Treatment Works.
In my opinion, the system of sewerage in the City is adequate, with ample margin for diverting
flows from sewers during reconstruction and maintenance works."
NOISE
There was an increase in the number of complaints concerning noise in the City, which
necessitated 245 visits and 843 re-visits. Most of the complaints arose from demolition and reconstruction
operations and in this respect there was a noticeable change in the attitude on the
part of contractors towards accepting the need for the reduction of noise caused by the use of
pneumatic drills by fitting muffles to the drills at all times. While contractors show this apparent
willingness, there are the individual employees who often fetch everyone's efforts to naught by
their complete disregard for the necessity to reduce noise.
There was an increase in the number of out-of-hours visits made to assess levels of noise
created during the quieter hours of the night. These visits were mostly concerned with noise
from fans used for the ventilation of large buildings throughout the City and complaints made by
the new City residents in the Barbican Estate were in this category.
In addition the works of major reconstruction such as Moorgate Station and Cannon Street
give rise to much bitterness among residents. While it is appreciated that some work has to be
carried out when the railway tracks are out of use, it does appear at times that this is made the
excuse to run wild. It must be understood by everyone who contemplates construction work in
the City that any form of noisy work at night will inevitably lead to difficulties.
While it has been feasible to secure a satisfactory reduction of noise in cases where loudness
was the sole criterion of complaint, those problems associated with the irritating quality
of some noises have been most intractable.
COMMON LODGING HOUSE
In recent years various pressure groups have emphasised matters which have stirred a section
of the community into action. In the field of housing considerable attention has been drawn to the
plight of London's homeless, but here the only sustained appeal is where both parents and
children are concerned.
The housing aspect of a common lodging house can be seen in the sense that men are forced
through various circumstances to live in deprived conditions. If one can compare the general
standards of amenity and privacy that are afforded to normal people, the standards at a common
lodging house can only be described as being minimal and barely sufficient to keep body and soul
together. The extent of the problem is mitigated to a degree by the Salvation Army, who run the
hostel. As an organisation with an ideal, they persevere when many would consider an individual
to be a hopeless "drop-out."
The accommodation is very basic, In the main, large rooms are occupied by beds interspaced
with chairs, the numbers involved varying from 84 to 13 persons in a single room. In
contrast, a report of some years ago stated that: "They are crammed full of beds fromtop to
bottom, until there is no room for any more. Each bed is filled to capacity and may contain
as many as four, five and even six lodgers." In those days no attemptwas made to segregate
the sick and the healthy, the old and the young, the drunk and the sober.
During the year under review there has been a real improvement in conditions generally
at the registered common lodging house in Middlesex Street. Regular inspections have been
maintained throughout the year and many problems concerning the sanitary arrangements have
been dealt with on a personal basis by the public health inspector concerned and the Salvation
Army authorities. Much additional benefit has accrued because of the helpful attention of some
residents who are employed as a casual labour force, who bear the brunt of the sordid hard work
involved. These men, some who have been dutiful for many years, are among to-day's unsung
heroes. They carry out tasks that many men would feel insulted even to be asked to do, and
yet they execute this work for very little financial gain.