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TO THE MAYOR ALDERMEN AND COUNCILLORS OF THE BOROUGH OF LEYTON
Mr. Mayor, Ladies and Gentlemen,
I have the honour to submit this my third Annual Report as required by the Ministry
of Health. As will be noted this includes a statistical section on the Health Services
(National Health Service Act - Part III) but does not include a Report on the School Health
Services inasmuch as this year this has been published as a separate document.
The Registrar General's estimate of population in the Borough for 1957 is 99,670.
The decline in the population thus continues and compared with 1956 shows a decrease of
1230. The previous year showed a decrease of 1100. This is partly due to a natural decrease
by excess of deaths over births of 68. The birth rate of 11.64 shows a reduction as compared
with the 1956 figure of 11.74 per 1000 births. This figure is a long way below the
provisional National rate of 16.1.
The Death Rate of 12.32 per thousand of population is slightly lower than that of
1956 (12.84) but is higher than the provisional national figure of 11.5.
Conditions causing the highest mortality were Diseases of the Circulatory System,
Cancer and Diseases of the Lungs, in that order. There were five fewer deaths from Cancer
of the Lung than in 1956. The age distribution of Deaths shows an interesting comparison
between 1957 and figures for 1907, i.e. fifty years ago.
1907 1957 1907 1957
0 - 1 yrs 242 17 25 - 45 yrs 152 35
1 - 5 " 110 8 45-65 " 226 292
5 - 15 " 53 5 65 75 " 185 318
15-25 " 47 9 75 and over 170 544
Of the fourteen deaths classified as due to "all other accidents', eleven of them
occurred in persons of 70 to 92, nine as a result of falls in the home and two in respect
of accidental coal gas poisoning. During the year a voluntary committee was set up to
disseminate propaganda on home safety.
It is pleasing to note that the infantile death rate of 14.65 (compared to 22.78 in
1956, and a provisional national rate of 23.0) is, with the exception of 1954, the lowest
ever recorded in Leyton.
In general, the incidence of notifications of disease was very low measles and
whooping cough accounted for almost 1200 of the 1600 notifications received during the
year. The notifications of pneumonia totalled 223 which was largely due to the outbreak
of Asian 'flu in the autumn of the year. Nineteen cases of poliomyelitis were notified and
these are dealt with more fully in the body of the report.
No applications were made to a Court of Summary jurisdiction for orders under Section
47 of the National Assistance Act 1948 during the year. Visits were made to a number of
cases where it was considered such action might be necessary. However, with the co-operation
of the personal health services it was possible to keep the patients at home.
Twentyone burials were carried out under Section 50 of the National Assistance Act
1948. The arrangements entered into between the Borough Council and the local Hospital
Management Committee for the provision of mortuary facilities at Whipps Cross Hospital
Mortuary have continued during the year. 56 bodies were admitted and a further number ol'
(2)