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properties which were the subject of the inquiry, and to illustrate certain of these
features with photographs. (Please refer to photographs between pages 15 and 16 when
reading the outline report which follows).
BOUNDARIES OF THE CLEARANCE AREAS AND NUMBER OF BUILDINGS
The Compulsory Purchase Order embraces four Clearance Areas, comprising
183 unfit houses, in the following roads, or parts of roads - High Road,
E.11., Holloway Road, Denmark Street, Wood Street, Temple Street, Angle
Street, Argyle Street, Granville Street, Trinity Street and Short Street.
TYPE AND DESCRIPTION OF DWELLING HOUSES
Of the 183 dwelling houses in the clearance areas, all are situated in
terraces, with the exception of three houses in High Road, E. 11 (Nos, 453,
455 and 457), which are semi-detached, and one large property in Temple
Street (Temple House). Apart from three three-storeyed houses (Nos. 16 and
20 Temple Street and No. 40 Holloway Road), all the properties are of the
two-storeyed type, with single or two-storey back additions. All houses
have through ventilation and yard space at the rear. The majority of houses
have frontages varying from 12ft. to 16ft. Four double-fronted houses
(Nos. 453-457, High Road, E. 11 and 2, Temple Street) have frontages of over
30ft. "Temple House" has a frontage of 44ft. Seventy houses have no
forecourts; the depth of forecourts to the remainder varies from 5ft. to
16ft. The construction is traditional - brick walls, slated or tiled
pitched or central valley gutter roofs (with the exception of a few houses
which still have corrugated asbestos roofs following war damage), timber
floors (except some scullery floors which are of concrete) and joinery work,
and plaster walls and ceilings. With the exception of 18 houses, W.C.'s
are entered externally. Internal accommodation varies from 3 rooms including
scullery to 8 rooms, with the exception of "Temple House;" this latter
property comprises 13 rooms, each let as a separate tenancy to 1 old age
pensioner. The 13 occupants of the house share one communal wash-room and
2 external W. C.'s. Eight houses have bathrooms. Mains water supply is
provided over scullery sinks. Nineteen houses have no internal halls or
passages, so that living-rooms are inter-communicating and entered direct
from the street or forecourt. At 67 houses staircases rise from livingrooms.
Many of the houses are badly arranged on the site, obstructing free
admission of natural light and impeding the circulation of air.
The majority of the houses are badly arranged internally, staircases
often constitute a danger to the occupants by reason of their position,
construction and inadequate lighting.
Other typical forms of bad arrangement are rooms inter-communicating,
ground floor rooms at different levels, fuel storage cupboards beneath
stairs and entered from living rooms, and room accommodation cramped and
congested.
The houses are between 70 and 100 years old; they contain inherent
structural defects, and fall short of the minimum requirements of the Housing
Acts; the most satisfactory method of dealing with conditions in the areas
is demolition of all buildings in the areas.
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