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
Dagenham 1933
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Dagenham]
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40
15s. 6d. 5 roomed cottage 17s. 6d., and 6 roomed 22s. 6d. These
are the average figures ; in practice, some pay up to 4s. Od. over
these sums for their accommodation. Under the 1930 Housing
Act, the following standard of accommodation is adopted as the
normal for certain types of houses 2 bedroomed house, 4 persons,
3 bedroomed, 5 persons, and 4 bedroomed house 7 persons,
Actually houses could be obtained at lower rents than these
without causing undue overcrowding. In the case of those
chronically unemployed, such a change would be desirable as
the slight loss in housing facilities would be more than counterbalanced
by the increased purchasing power of the family income.
In the ease of those temporarily unemployed, however, such a
recommendation would not be made.
This standard has been adopted in the following table which
gives, for various types of families, the cost in this district of
providing for the family the diets set out in the B.M.A. dietaries,
the rent of the appropriate accommodation, the public assistance
allowance for the family and the unemployment benefit.
the public assistance allowance for the family qand unemployment benefit
| Family. | Food. | Rent. | Unempl. Benefit. | Public Assist. | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| s. | d. | s. | d. | s. | d. | s. | d. | |
| M.W. Ch. 1-2 | 13 | 10 | 9 | 6 | 25 | 3 | 25 | 8 |
| M.W. Ch. 2-3 | 13 | 10 | 9 | 6 | 25 | 3 | 25 | 8 |
| M.W. Ch. 3-6 | 14 | 3 | 12 | 0 | 25 | 3 | 27 | 2 |
| M.W. Ch. 6-8 | 14 | 2 | 12 | 6 | 25 | 3 | 27 | 6 |
| M.W. Ch. 8-10 | 14 | 8 | 12 | 6 | 25 | 3 | 27 | 6 |
| M.W. Ch. 1-2 : 2-3 : 3-6 | 20 | 7½ | 15 | 6 | 29 | 3 | 34 | 3 |
| M.W. Ch. 1-2 : 6-8 : 8-10 | 20 | 9 | 15 | 6 | 29 | 3 | 34 | 3 |
| M.W. Ch. 6-8 : 10-12 : 12-14 | 23 | 5 | 17 | 6 | 29 | 3 | 35 | 6 |
It will be noted that although the allowance for children
does not cover the extra cost of food alone for the larger families,
that the larger families are additionally handicapped by a substantial
increase in the rent if they are to be sutably housed.
The 1931 Census disclosed that the average size of family here
was. 4.7, which means that a larger than average number of
families would require the greater accommodation.
The district, however, is relatively fortunate in the extent
of its unemployment. Compared with other working class districts
the percentage of unemployment is small and the length of spells
of unemployment short, partly owing to the comparative
youthfulness of the population. The problem is not so much the
ease of the unemployed, as of the low wage earners who might be
worse off in effective income than the other groups. The following