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2.
To the MAYOR, ALDERMEN and COUNCILLORS of the METROPOLITAN BOROUGH OF
SHOREDITCH.
Mr. Mayor, Ladies and Gentlemen,
In recent years it has been noticeable that the sun shines more brightly
in Shoreditch, so that the bus conductor who announced "Shoreditch Garden
Suburb" on arrival at the terminus near Shoreditch Church did not sound quite
so facetious as would have been the case in December 19521 However, the
Borough Council is determined to help still further, by compressing the smoke
control programme into a shorter space of time, and thus having the whole
Borough controlled by 1965 at latest: the London County Council is helping
in the eastern part of the Borough by creating Haggerston Park, but is not
helping the more overcrowded western part of the Borough: the Census of l$6l
shows a 10% reduction in the population since 1951, ao that, once we leave the
noisy congested roads, we should breathe more easily. Even on the roads,
this Department has been making its contribution by sending about 250 letters
to owners of vehicles passing through and emitting excessive fumes.(p.4l)
The vital statistics of the Borough have been very satisfactory for
everything except the number of deaths from tuberculosis which have relapsed
to the pre-1956 levels. Admittedly the victims were all over 45 years of age,
and mostly over 65, but this slip back is disconcerting, especially as the
habit of spitting on pavements appears to be on the increase again, despite
the placing of notices at strategic points in the Borough (The Health Department
has plenty of these available to any employer or property-owner in the
Borough if they will apply to me.)
Apart from 1961 being a "measles year", our notifications of infectious
diseases have never been better, for we not only had no cases of puerperal
sepsis (and certainly not a maternal death), but we had not a single case of
polio, diphtheria or any of the other crippling diseases - even dysentery was
down from 109 in i960 to a mere 7 in 1961.
As will be seen by a glimpse at the staff (page 5), 1961 has been the
most difficult year in our whole history for public health inspectors, for,
after the retirement of Mr. Gibbs (who had been here almost from childhood
and finally reached 60), the last straw broke with the resignation of Mr.
Lambden, the deputy chief. This left us with a mere skeleton of three
inspectors none of whom had their 'meat and other foods certificate1, and
our new smoke inspector to support Mr. Marshall. Each one had fortunately
been provided with a portable dictation machine which he could take with him
on his district, so that none had any clerical work, but, even so, they were
not capable of holding the fort alone, so, in desperation, the Council
appealed for permission to engage 3 senior supervisory officers instead of
1 deputy, and this gives hope for 1962.
All credit must be given to the depleted staff of inspectors, and to the
two trainees who perhaps obtained more practical, if less theoretical,
training at that time, for they pursued the Noise Abatement Act prosecutions
as well as preventing a complete collapse of other services. This has meant