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1929
8
New Streets and Buildings
Removal of House Refuse
Common Lodging Houses
Slaughter Houses
Nuisances, etc.
Offensive Trades
Tents, Vans and Sheds
Removal of Offensive or Noxious Matters
Houses Let in Lodgings
Cleansing of Cisterns
Employment of Children
Fouling of Footpaths by Dogs
Smoke Abatement
1925
1899
1898
1924
1924
1903
1906
1908
1925
1912
1920
1929
1930
HOUSING
I have in previous reports referred to different aspects of
of the housing question in the district, and this year I shall only
briefly mention one of these aspects. As far as Acton is concerned,
overcrowding is one of, if not the most serious factor in the
housing problem.
Overcrowding here is not the result of the post-war housing
shortage; it has existed always and will exist as long as poverty
exists. It has been aggravated recently by the establishment of
large factories in the district, and the desire of those employed in
the factories to be living near the place where they work. Owing
to the industrialisation of the district we shall always be short of
houses. But overcrowding occurs quite as frequently amongst
those who live in the district and who work outside as
amongst those who are both living and employed in the district.
The basic cause of overcrowding is the inability to pay anything
like an economic rent. Overcrowding and poverty usually go together.
Low wages and large families also generally go together,
and therefore the smaller the house the larger the family. When
a young couple married, they rented a couple or more rooms in a
house, and as the family increased in number they have been
unable to rent a bigger flat or house. The flat they now occupy
is probably controlled, and if they went to a larger flat, it would
be decontrolled and a much higher rent would be asked of them.
But even in those cases where the rent can be paid, landlords do
not welcome a large family. Landlords frequently look upon a
large family as a feckless one and think that the condition of the
house will suffer in direct ratio to the size of the family. We
sometimes come across a family, which because of its size cannot
find better accommodation although a higher rent could be
paid, but these are rare exceptions; the usual cause of