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5
Town Hall.,
Dyne Road, Kilburn, N.W. 6.
4th April, 1922.
To the Willesden Urban District Council—
The Local Sanitary Authority,
and the Local Education Authority.
I beg to submit herewith the Annual Health Report for Willesden for the year 1921. This
Report includes:—
(i.) The 46th Annual Report on the health and sanitary condition of the district;
(ii.) The 14th Annual Report on the health of children attending the public elementary
schools;
(iii.) The 2nd Annual Report on the health of children attending secondary schools ;
(iv.) The 4th Annual Report on dental work in connection with children attending the
public elementary schools, expectant and nursing mothers and children under
5 years ;
(v.) The 2nd Annual Report on home nursing ;
(vi.) The 7th Annual Report on the provision of meals to children attending the public
elementary schools ;
(vii.) The 30th Annual Report on the Municipal Hospital.
Alterations in the Contents of Annual Reports.—The Ministry of Health issued Circular
269, dated 28th December, 1921, curtailing their requirements as to Annual Reports, and this Report
is written in accordance therewith. In future Annual Reports of a full and detailed character will be
known as Survey Reports, and will normally be required by the Ministry at intervals of not more than
5 years. The Annual Report for Willesden for 1920 will be treated as constituting the first of the
series of Survey Reports, and the Annual Report for the year 1921 therefore follows the more simple
lines now laid down by the Ministry for Annual Reports as distinguished from Survey Reports.
The primary object of future Survey Reports will be to review the needs of the area in relation
to the protection of public health and the progress made in meeting these needs since the date of the
preceding Survey Report. The Ministry will issue special instructions with regard to the preparation
of the next Survey Report.
Vital Statistics.
Population.—The decennial census was taken in June, 1921, and gave the population of
Willesden as 165,669. The Registrar-General points out that the Census taken in June, 1921, was
probably to some extent affected by the holiday movement of the population, and he has deemed it
necessary therefore to make an adjustment by measuring the extent of the non-resident population in
certain areas and by effecting its redistribution throughout the country. He therefore estimates the
population of Willesden at 167,200 in June, 1921.
Birth Rate.—In 1921, 3,464 births were registered as compared with 4,232 in 1920. The
birth rate of Willesden, according to the Registrar-General for the year 1921 is 21.30 per thousand of
the population.
Death Rate.—During the year 1921, 1,677 deaths were registered as belonging to Willesden,
as compared with 1,672 in 1920. The death rate for Willesden for 1921, according to the RegistrarGeneral,
is 10.03 per thousand of the population, being the lowest recorded except in 1912, when it
was 10.02, and 1920, when it was 9.78, but this latter rate was calculated on too high a population
as the Census now shews.
Infant Mortality Rate.—255 deaths of infants occurred under 1 year of age, giving an infant
mortality rate of 74 per thousand, which, except for the year 1920, is the lowest recorded in the health
annals of Willesden. The infantile mortality rate amongst legitimate births was 66.4 and illegitimate
births 337.0 per 1,000 births.
INFECTIOUS DISEASES.
3,346 cases of infectious diseases were notified during the year. The greatest number previously
recorded was 4,559 cases in 1917, which, however, included 3,425 cases of Measles or German Measles,
which diseases are not now notifiable.
Diphtheria and Scarlet Fever.—The total of 3,346 includes 767 notifications of Diphtheria
and 1,508 notifications of Scarlet Fever. The number of notifications of Diphtheria and Scarlet Fever
indicates that these diseases were epidemic in Willesden during the year. Epidemics of Scarlet Fever
and Diphtheria were widespread throughout the country in 1921, and difficulty in making provision
for the hospital treatment of all notified cases has been reported from various large centres of population,
including London and Manchester. During the year 1921 the Willesden Municipal Hospital
admitted 1,599 notified cases of infectious diseases, a greater number than ever before, the greatest
previous number being 1,207 in 1920. All cases of Diphtheria desiring Hospital treatment have been
admitted on account of the dangerous nature of the disease, but only the more urgent cases of Scarlet