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of them small family businesses, and 4l2 visits were made during
the course of the year in connection with the various provisions
of the Act. A result was that a number of minor infringements
were revealed and remedied but the need to institute proceedings
under the Act did not arise.
The Offices, Shops and Railway Premises Act, 1963,
came into force in the middle of 1964. The Act, which
provides standards of health, safety and welfare for workers in
offices, shops and certain railway premises, covers a wide range of
matters including, for example, cleanliness, overcrowding, room
temperature, ventilation, lighting, toilet facilities, safety,
first-aid facilities and fire precautions. For office workers
the provisions are the first of their kind while for shop workers
the existing protection provided by the Shops Act is extended.
The Act does not apply to premises where only selfemployed
persons or members of their immediate family work, or
to small offices or shops where paid help is only occasionally
employed.
Enforcement, in which the factory inspectorate, the
fire authorities, and local authorities, all have their part to
play, will undoubtedly involve a great deal of worthwhile work.
So far as our own staff were concerned the demands of other public
health work left little opportunity for a planned programme of
enforcement during the year and our efforts were in the main
limited to the registration of premises.

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