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57
REPORT OF THE CHIEF PUBLIC HEALTH INSPECTOR
I beg to submit a report for the year ending 31st December,
1957, of the work of the Public Health Inspectors and other
Officers under my control.
Again, new legislation in the form of the Rent Act, 1957
and the Clean Air Act, 1956 and the completion of inspections of
food premises under the Food Hygiene Regulations, 1955, absorbed
much of the time of the staff.
Whilst the food premises in the Borough now, in the main,
satisfy the structural requirements of the Regulations, regular
inspections will be required to see that the other important
provisions are receiving attention.
The new Rent Act places the responsibility with the Inspectorate
of being the arbiters as between landlord and tenant
regarding the extent and type of repairs considered necessary to
merit the permitted increased rent. Up to the end of the year,
the number of Certificates of Disrepair applied for had been
comparatively few.
Further progress has been made with the slum clearance and
redevelopment programme in that new flats are being built on the
site of the demolished unfit dwellings in Ely Road-Holmesdale
Road; and the Crescent Mews lettings are likely soon to be
vacated with a view to early redevelopment of that site also.
The Clean Air Act, 1956 came into operation, in part,
during the year and the Council quickly signified their support
of its intentions by agreeing in principle to the establishment
of a Smoke Control Area in the Waddon-South Croydon district,
and by agreeing to adopt a byelaw requiring all new buildings to
be provided with fireplaces capable of burning fuels smokelessly.
The Act also requires occupiers of buildings to give notice
to the Council of their intention to fix new furnaces in
connection with boiler plant and quite a number of these have
been received. Any new chimneys in connection with such plant
have to be carried up to a sufficient height to disperse properly
the products of combustion.
All occupiers of factories, firms of architects and surveyors,
trade organisations etc. were communicated with and
given copies of a summary of the Act.
During 1958 the remaining provisions of the Act which will
aim at controlling the emission of smoke from factory plants