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34
Action to deal with the conditions found was taken under either
the Public Health Act or the Housing Act, the latter being used to a
slightly greater extent than in the previous year.
In the case of ten properties dealt with under the Housing Act,
it was necessary to carry out repair work in default of the owner. Fifteen
properties were found in such a state of disrepair as to necessitate action
being taken with a view to demolition orders being made.
The provision of other accommodation for the occupants of dwellings
which are the subject of demolition orders gives rise to many difficulties,
for though there is no statutory obligation on a local authority to provide
alternative accommodation, the present housing shortage makes it
almost impossible for either owners or tenants to do this. The question
of the rehousing of the occupants of such properties is, therefore, referred
to the Housing Committee.
Six families were rehoused by the Council during 1949 from properties
which were the subject of demolition orders of previous years, leaving
41 condemned properties occupied at the end of the year.
No appeals were lodged against the notices served under the provisions
of the Housing Acts for securing the execution of works of repair
on the grounds that the property concerned could not be repaired at a
reasonable cost. Where an owner failed to execute the work within the
period allowed by the notice, it was carried out by the Council in default.
Overcrowding.
At the end of 1948 there were 628 known cases of overcrowding
in the district. During the year 178 new cases were brought to light.
On the other hand, overcrowding was abated in 424 instances. The
number of cases by the end of 1949, therefore, was 383. 107 cases were
abated by families being rehoused by the Council, 87 in Council houses and
20 in requisitioned property.
In assessing crowding, according to the standards of the Housing
Act, an adult ranks as 1 unit; a child of 1 to 10 years as half a unit,
but a child under one year, not at all. A family which is not overcrowded
when it first occupies certain premises might well become so by the
natural increase in the size of the family, or by the ageing of the child
members. This will happen only in those cases in which the accommodation,
before the change in circumstances, was already near the limit of
crowding. Another closely associated method by which overcrowding
can occur is by one of the older children getting married, the spouse
coming to live with the family and then perhaps, in due course, a child
being born. Crowding by these two methods can be expected to occur
year after year, as long as accommodation is being occupied near to the
limits of crowding.
In 32 of the 383 houses which were overcrowded at the end of the
year, the houses or some rooms in the houses had been let so as to be
overcrowded. In 144 cases, the overcrowding was brought about by
the married children going to live with their parents; in 51 by relatives
other than married children going to live with the tenants; and in 24 was