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A slight amendment is made to the penalty clauses under Section 65 of the Housing Act 1964 in that
the obligation to execute works required continues after the notice expires and after any conviction
which may be secured under Section 65. Maximum penalities under Section 19 of the Housing Act
1961 and Section 90 of the Housing Act 1957 are increased from £20 to £100 for the first offence.
Certain other amendments are made to Section 19 so that it is possible to specify the number of
households as well as the number of individuals when making Directions.
The complex procedure of making Control Orders is further amended if a local authority make a
Compulsory Purchase Order within 28 days of making the Control Order. The already difficult
financial processes are then further amended and provision made for the service of notices to secure
the carrying out of urgent works prior to the Minister's decision as to whether or not he confirms the
Compulsory Purchase Order.
There is now a choice of three types of Registration Schemes for houses in multiple occupation
which may be made, instead of the single scheme laid down in Section 22 of the Housing Act 1961,
as follows:-
1. A scheme of notification by owners or other interested persons that a house appears to be
registrable (as under Section 22 of the Housing Act 1961) (i.e. is occupied by 3 or more households
as the local authority may determine).
2. A scheme containing control provisions for preventing multiple occupation of a house to a greater
extent than at the time the provisions came into force, unless the house was registered. There
is power to refuse to register.
(a) if the house is unsuitable and incapable of being made suitable for occupation in present
circumstances; and (b) if the person having control of the house is considered to be not a fit
and proper person; and the Council can require as a condition of registration that work is
carried out to put the house into such condition that it would be accepted for registration.
3. A scheme combining both the above schemes.
Schemes can be made to apply to the whole or any part of a Borough, and consideration may be given
to the making of a scheme in Haringey.
With the emphasis now on the improvement of dwellings with the aid of grant, this is yet another
aspect to be considered when dealing with houses in multiple occupation and, of course, involves
considering the potentialities of a house as well as its shortcomings, and then discussing these
with the owner as alternatives to bringing the house up to multiple occupation standards. The
"multiple occupation" standards are merely a palliative and it is far better for a house to be improved
to a higher standard and to achieve full amenities for the exclusive use of each household and, if
possible, self contained flats, than merely to increase the number of shared amenities. Full
"improvement" should be the aim of the future. Many of the properties in multiple occupation do
not lend themselves to conversion without displacement of a number of households and it may not be
an economic proposition for an owner to convert a house to, say, 3 flats as against perhaps having
six separate lettings. After the expense of conversion the financial return may be less than before,
and there is the additional problem of finding accommodation for the displaced households, so that
even with the encouragement of substantial grants, the problem of multiple occupation is likely to
remain with us for many years to come.
House in Multiple Occupation — Summary of Action taken in 1969
Number of separately occupied parts of houses visited for first time 1,831
Number of revisits to above 11,626
Number of inspections where multiple occupation would exist upon completion of
mortgage advances being contemplated by this Council 30
Number of houses completely inspected 367
Number of houses where informal notices sent relative to S15 217
Number of houses where informal notices sent relative to S16 292
Number of houses where items of inadequate management notified to owners 176
Number of cases of penal overcrowding 79
Number of cases of penal overcrowding abated 69
Number of cases of non-penal overcrowding 19
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