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116
1954/57, one of the most difficult decisions to be taken by the Inspectorate
will be whether the work undertaken has remedied the defects and brought
the dwelling to a state of "good repair."
The inspection and revisiting of property in connection with this part
of the Act dealing with these matters will fall heavily on the staff of the
department, the full effect of which will not be felt until 1970.
Overcrowding
On the 1st January, 1969 there were 11 known cases of overcrowding
in the district. During the year 6 new cases were added to the register,
and 9 were removed from it. Of these, 3 families were rehoused by the
Council and 6 were abated by other means. At the end of the year, of the
8 cases known, 3 involved houses and 5 rooms.
Normal increase in the size of the family caused overcrowding in
5 cases, 1 was due to married children living with their parents, 1 was
due to non-relative lodgers being taken in, and in 1 case the premises
were let so as to be overcrowded.
For purposes of comparison, it is perhaps of interest to record that
the number of cases of statutory overcrowding revealed by the survey
that was undertaken pursuant to the Housing Act, 1935 (the first Housing
Act to define overcrowding), was 187. The situation improved, then as a
result of the war when, over a period of four years, few, if any, dwellings
were being built the number of cases on the register rose to 628 (1.1.49).
Today, having regard to the overall shortage of accommodation, the
current position in the Borough can be said to be "satisfactory."
RENT ACT, 1957
CERTIFICATE OF DISREPAIR
Having regard to the number of controlled tenancies in the district,
very few applications were received during the year for Certificates of
Disrepair—of the eight applications received, undertakings were accepted
in one case and certificates were issued in respect of seven.
The Housing Act, 1969, which came into operation during August
1969, is likely to bring about a marked reduction in the number of applications
received.
SUPERVISION OF OTHER PREMISES
A perusal of the statistical summary at the commencement of this
section of the report will give some indication of the wide range of the
duties that are undertaken by the Public Health Inspector.