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8
CONURBATION CHAOS
Greater London is divided up into local authorities, but one may not
realise this when one considers the local administrative areas that are
chosen to run their services by many bodies including, one may remark,
some of the larger local authorities. There is a tendancy for an authority
or its officer to declare with much pride that they or he do not take
cognizance of local authority boundaries when arranging to administer
their functions. They soon find, however, that if they do not delimit their
areas, these will stretch from the North Sea to the Bristol Channel; so, in
a great hurry, limits are drawn. However, by not believing in local
authority boundaries, these limits may be made to cut across communities,
communities may be left out of the reckoning, and many other inconsistencies
arise. Lest it should be thought that I am exaggerating, I will
draw attention to the struggle that was required to persuade medical superintendents
of hospitals dealing with the chronic sick that Ilford, which
previously used beds in Essex County Council institutions, required any
accommodation for the aged sick whatsoever, when these superintendents
set about arranging their catchment areas.
Let us begin with the Post Office. Granted Ilford Parish was once
a small attachment to Barking, but I am not sure that the postal authorities
yet realise that this arrangement has come to an end, for the greater part
of Ilford is in the Ilford and Barking Postal District. Outside this area
in Ilford the most amazing inconsistencies exist. For instance, Chadwell
Heath, Romford may be either in the Ilford or Dagenham Boroughs but
the postal address would be Romford and part of llford has the postal
address of Dagenham (in the Romford Postal District). Lest there be any
jealousy, part of the borough of Dagenham is in the Ilford and Barking
Postal District. A part of North Ilford also comes under the Woodford
Green office. Most people will assume, with some justification, that Ilford,
Dagenham and Romford are separate boroughs That letters and packages
correctly addressed are efficiently sorted and delivered I have no doubt;
the difficulty lies in the mind of the public, who obstinately consider that
somebody living in Ilford has an address there, and not a Dagenham one,
so letters are incorrectly addressed and therefore delayed. Letters and
notifications from hospitals and doctors dealing with disease, which may
require urgent action, are repeatedly sent to the Medical Officer of Health
of the borough according to the postal address; this means of course that
the Medical Officer of Health of Ilford gets correspondence meant for the
Medical Officer of Health of Dagenham, and vice versa.
The Metropolitan Police, in more ways than one, are a law unto
themselves. South Ilford is in K Division, with headquarters in East
Ham; North Ilford is in J. Division and its headquarters are in Hackney;
both of these divisions contain fragments of other local authorities. J
Division specialises in this. An old map shows that it once included parts
of 5 metropolitan boroughs, part of one county borough, parts of 5 municipal
boroughs, part of one urban district, and not one whole authority.
It has now been reorganised to include parts of 3 metropolitan boroughs,
parts of 2 county boroughs, parts of 2 municipal boroughs, 4 whole municipal
boroughs and 2 whole urban districts, a definite indication of progress.
The Coroner and his pathologist are so accustomed to dissections that
they have dissected Ilford. Inquests on deaths north of Eastern Avenue
except King George Hospital are held at Walthamstow; those south of
Eastern Avenue, including King George Hospital, at East Ham. The
mortuary in Ilford, with which we have taken so much trouble, takes
bodies at the moment from South Ilford. East Ham. Barking and Dagenham,
but those from North Ilford go to Walthamstow. The medical officer
of health is vitally interested in investigations carried out in these premises
and should not be subject to these directions from the coroner.
The National Assistance Board with whom we should closely work
as we are both interested in the welfare of old people, combine South
Ilford with Barking and Goodmayes Ward with Dagenham. However,