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
Marylebone 1926
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for St. Marylebone, Metropolitan Borough]
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During the year under review, the list of registered houses covered 1,070
premises, and in all, 10.920 visits were paid to these. The number of notices
served was 1,730, relating to cleansing and other defects. All of these were
complied with without the necessity for further proceedings arising.
Common Lodging Houses.—The following table contains all the necessary
particulars with regard to the licensed premises of this class in the borough.
Situation, etc., of Licensed Common Lodging Houses.
| Address. | Registered Owner. | Registered number of Occupants. |
|---|---|---|
| 54, Bell Street | Eliza Crew | 55 men |
| 2, Burne Street and Lisson Street | W. Bramwell Booth | 499 men |
| 6, Charlotte Place | Emma Lawson | 7 women |
| 29, Circus Street | William H. G. Richardson | 100 men |
| " Portland House " (late Shaftesbury Institute), Harrow and Union Streets, Lisson Grove | Frederick Gerard van de Linde | 102 women |
| Total | 654 men 109 women | |
| 768 |
That these beds are fully used may be taken as certain, a census made by the
L.C.C. on the nights of November 5th and 6th, and referred to in a report recently
issued by Dr. Kay Menzies, the County Medical Officer of Health, revealing that
of the 654 beds for men no fewer than 050 were occupied, and of the 109 for
women 106.
A number of visits were paid to all the houses from time to time by officers of
the department and the attention of the person in charge or the London County
Council directed to any matter calling for remedy.
Underground Rooms.—As close supervision as possible was kept over rooms
of this class, and whenever necessity compelled notices to discontinue occupation
were served. The total number dealt with in this way was 6.
C.—PREMISES THAT ARE NOT BUT SHOULD BE
REGISTERED.
For a variety of reasons the number of premises in the borough in which
meals are provided or food is sold ready cooked or is prepared for sale is very
large. At the end of 1926 there were 296, this number including: Restaurant,
dining room and coffee shop kitchens, 190; tea-rooms and pastry-cooks, 58; hotel
kitchens, 20 ; fried fish shops, 23; and fish-curers 5. In addition, there were a
number of shops in which meat, ham, sausages, etc., were cooked and sold only
over the counter.
On more than one occasion the Borough Council, at the suggestion of the
Public Health Committee, have directed the attention of the Ministry of Health
and the London County Council to the necessity for legislation requiring registration
of food premises of this class. Up to the present no step in this direction
has been taken by either of the authorities mentioned.
The routine practice of visiting a number of restaurants, etc., each week was
continued by the Food Inspector, and any matters discovered dealt with at once.
In 1926 the total number of inspections was 1,092, the number of notices served
being 21.