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premises were sub-let but there was no sub-letting in the overcrowded
tenement. For instance, there was overcrowding in 3
two-roomed tenements. These were part of a five-roomed letting
but the tenant had sub-let two rooms to a sub-tenant, and the
overcrowding was in these rooms. It would be more correct,
therefore, to say that these were five-roomed tenements overcrowded
because of sub-letting. In 74 of the overcrowded lettings, separation
of the sexes was impossible. 22 of these were two-roomed lettings,
and 46 three-roomed. Of the 74, 50 were controlled lettings, and 24
decontrolled. The cause of the relative frequency of this factor
in controlled lettings is not far to seek. The rooms are secured
by a husband and wife newly married. The rooms are not unpleasantly
overcrowded when the children are young, but as they
grow up there is no means to secure properly the separation of the
sexes. Even if the rent of a decontrolled house could be paid, it
is not to be wondered at that a certain hesitancy was observed to
forego the advantages of a controlled letting. The difficulty of
separation of the sexes was mainly observed in two and threeroomed
tenements.
Overcrowding in Council Houses.
The information given on this head is contained in table
" C " which shows the distribution of families in houses belonging
to the Council.
A total of 492 houses were inspected, and of these 26 were
overcrowded, or a percentage of 5.2. The percentage overcrowded
in the Council houses is twice as high as in the rest of the houses in
the district. In the case of most authorities, the degree of overcrowding
in their own houses is greater than in privately-owned
houses. In the whole of England and Wales the percentage of
overcrowded families in houses owned by housing authorities was
5.l compared with 3.7 in privately-owned houses. In Middlesex
there was a percentage of 4.9 overcrowded in Council houses compared
with 2.2 in privately-owned houses. In almost all districts
this phenomenon was observed. On the surface this is an unsatisfactory
position, but the reasons are not far to seek. Local
authorities in their provision of new houses, have, for the most
part, erected houses suitable in size for the average working-class
family, and the proportion of large houses erected has been comparatively
small.
Of the 492 erected by the Council, 223 consist of houses or
flats of a living room, scullery and three bedrooms, and 213 consist