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26. GENERAL PUBLIC HEALTH MEASURES
The work of the Environmental Health Section of the Department is organized
under the Chief Public Health Inspector in six main Divisions, two of which deal
with general district work and the remaining four with Meat Inspection, Housing,
Clean Air and Food and Drugs respectively. Each Division is under the immediate
control of a Divisional Public Health Inspector, and there are also sub-divisions
dealing with rodent control, work under the Offices, Shops and Railway Premises
Act, 1963, and general duty transport with disinfection and disinfestation.
The duties are briefly as follows:—
General Divisions—Investigation of general complaints and nuisances observed;
infectious disease and food poisoning enquiries; drainage; water supplies;
disinfection and disinfestation; river pollution; routine inspection of factories,
outworkers' premises, certain food premises and offices and shops; caravans;
industrial and domestic smoke emissions; Rent Act applications; schools; unsound
food; swimming baths; rodent and pigeon control.
Meat Inspection Division—Meat inspection at slaughterhouse; enforcement of
slaughterhouse and slaughtering legislation; Diseases of Animals Act; sale and
movement of animals from Southall market; pig-keeping; licensing of slaughtermen;
pet animals; boarding of animals; riding establishments.
Housing Division—Slum clearance; individual unfit houses; underground rooms;
overcrowding; houses in multiple occupation; mortgage enquiries.
Clean Air Division—Implementation of clean air programme and work in connection
with new and existing smoke control orders; measurement of atmospheric
pollution; notification and prior approval of new furnaces; chimney heights;
building plans.
Food Division—Sampling of food and drugs; registration of milk purveyors;
milk special designation licences; registration of premises for ice cream and preserved
foods; bacteriological examination of milk, ice cream, imitation cream, well-water
and miscellaneous foods; inspection of certain food premises; consumer food
complaints; food hygiene and clean food scheme.
NUISANCES
During the year, 5,241 complaints were received, and the vast majority of these
concerned housing defects and nuisances which were investigated by inspectors of
the General Divisions. Action taken as a result of these complaints resulted in
4,337 initial inspections of premises of all types and the service of 1,222 informal
notices under the Public Health Act and other allied legislation. In most cases, the
requirements of these informal notices were dealt with in a reasonable time by the
persons responsible, but it was also necessary to serve 297 statutory notices. In the
case of nine premises, legal proceedings were taken by the Council in order to achieve
results which could not be obtained by less formal methods and details of these are
given in Table 7.
DESTRUCTION OF PIGEONS—PUBLIC HEALTH ACT, 1961
Section 74 of the Public Health Act, 1961, enables local authorities to take steps
to abate or reduce any nuisance, annoyance or damage caused by the congregation
of house doves, pigeons, starlings or sparrows in built-up areas, provided the work
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