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Sanitary Inspectors alone was costly, and was, of course, taken up
at the expense of work more in keeping with the Inspectors' qualifications.
It is important here to emphasise the unsuccessful control
which the, perhaps, less costly measures then produced.
It became obvious to those intimately concerned that the only
sensible approach was, first, to introduce a whole-time skilled
service for the destruction of rats and mice. We were in possession
of data and experience which could bring us nearer to successful
control than ever before. Secondly, experience justified the need
for the service tp be free so far as private dwellings were concerned.
Accordingly, the Council endorsed the suggestion of the Health &
Welfare Committee, and two Rodent Operators were appointed,
one for the free private dwelling service, and one for the business
premises. It is not reasonably possible to employ sufficient staff to
cover the whole area, and to deal with each individual complaint,
and so in addition, materials, and instructions for their use in a
poisoning campaign, are issued gratis to any person complaining
who does not reside in an area where the Rodent Operator is working
at the time of the complaint. A visit is paid to such properties as
soon as possible to check the work of the householder.
In 1946 the Ministry of Food instituted its private dwellings
campaign. The Ministry too, had realised that free skilled service
to householders was the only sensible method of repression. Local
Authorities were offered reimbursement, to the extent of 60% of the
cost, to institute such a scheme. The Ministry imposed grant
conditions. Suggestions were made by Officers of the Ministry
regarding the staff necessary in Beckenham, and it was assumed by
them that four investigators, six operators, a supervising Officer,
and at least one clerk, were necessary. Your Officers felt that the
problem, without being overcome, was reasonably controlled in
Beckenham, its new organisation already being in operation. To
employ the staff suggested appeared to be unwarrantable, and a
waste of public money. The Ministry was so informed, and, after
much negotiation, agreement was reached that grant from Central
Funds would be paid if one additional Operator was employed. The
Council agreed to such an appointment.
The really important result of the operation of the present
scheme lies in the abolition of the difficulties which attended our
previous efforts because those difficulties spelt failure.
I feel that statistical information, which must be indefinite,
has no place of worth in a report on the control of this vermin. Our
factual knowledge of rats leaves us in no doubt that hundreds may
breed and flourish in a matter of weeks. Obviously proper control
will result in the killing of hundreds. It may be of some interest to
know the number of rats killed by the Operators, but one can never
be sure of obtaining factual information. The time involved in
arriving at hypothetical figures can be ill afforded. It is better to be
sure that an infestation is completely overcome.
As a matter of interest, and for the purposes of this report, I
selected at random ten addresses from my records where infestation
did exist, and where the Operators had worked several months ago.
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