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of the under-mentioned defects exist in varying degrees at all houses.
Repair and Stability
Evidence of uneven settlement-brickwork of rear and front elevations
bulged and/or fractured out of plumb and alignment, brickwork courses out
of level, window and door openings out of square, sills fractured, roofs
sagging, floors out of level, excessive vibration in floors. General disrepair
internally and externally.
Freedom from Damp
Dampness rising in walls due to absence of effective damp proof coursesdampness
penetrating walls and ceilings due to porous brickwork; defective
sills and window connections; leaking roofs, eaves gutters and rainwater
pipes and valley gutters.
Natural Lighting
Insufficient natural light in ground floor back and back addition and
first floor back addition rooms, due to obstruction or overshadowing caused
by close proximity of adjoining buildings. Staircases, passages and W.Cs
dark, due to absence of windows to the external air.
Ventilation
Rooms without permanent means of ventilation and/or ventilation impeded
by reason of decayed or defective window woodwork making sashes difficult,
if not impossible, to open. Inadequate ventilation to staircases and W.Cs.
Water Supply
The only water supply available for domestic and personal purposes is
by cold water tap over scullery sinks; a number of tenants have provided
their own water heaters.
Drainage and Sanitary Conveniences
Surface drainage impeded by broken and sunken paving of yards, and roof
drainage inadequate. W.Cs are situated externally and badly sited in yards
with little privacy. At 25 houses the only available W.C. is shared by more
than one family.
General Observations
The houses are about a hundred years old. They are obsolete in design,
outworn, badly arranged internally and externally, and fall short of the
minimum requirements of the Housing Act. In our opinion the most satisfactory
method of dealing with conditions in the area is demolition of all buildings
in the area.
The confirmation of the Morris/Avenue Road Compulsory Purchase Order marks a further
stage in the Council's long-term programme of slum clearance; it is inevitable-owing
to the shortage of alternative housing accommodation and the scarcity of land on which
to build new houses-that many hundreds of sub-standard houses will have to be retained,
and maintained for housing purposes for many years to come. The public health inspectorate
will therefore be faced for an indefinite period with a problem of enforcing
essential repairs to insanitary properties which may be considered beyond satisfactory
repair and improvement.
The statistical section of the report contains details of inspections and notices
served under the Housing and Public Health Acts and other relevant legislation; the
number of houses classified as a result of inspections under the Housing Consolidated
(17)