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19
National Assistance Act, 1948.
(a) Section 47. One person was dealt with under this section
during the year. This related to a man of 84 years, living in one
room. He was found to be in a dirty condition in his person
and living in insanitary conditions.
(b) Section 50 requires a Local Authority to arrange for the
burial or cremation of a person who has died or been found
dead, and where it appears to the Local Authority no suitable
arrangements are being made for the disposal of the body.
No burials were dealt with during 1953.
Miss E. A. Workman, the Welfare Officer for Old People, reports as
follows:—
"During the year 1953 there was still considerable difficulty in coping
with the number of old people who wished to enter Homes or Hospitals.
Altogether 581 people were dealt with.
Of these—
68 died in their own homes,
62 were admitted to hospital (30 of these later died in hospital),
26 entered Homes (15 of these being admitted to Homes administered
by the Essex County Council),
11 entered private homes,
9 entered nursing homes,
5 were admitted to Mental Hospitals, and
8 moved from the district.
The number of visits paid to these cases amounted to 817, and, in
addition, 507 visits were paid and interviews given at the Public Health
Offices to friends and relatives and officers of the various bodies interested
in the welfare of the aged.
A serious position is still caused by those old people who have
suffered severe mental deterioration but are not certifiable. They are often
unwilling to receive any assistance and even when this difficulty has been
surmounted it is often impossible to provide sufficient supervision to
enable them to be satisfactorily cared for in their own homes.
The Council has been considering the question of employment for
old people and has obtained information of the schemes in operation in
the Metropolitan Boroughs of Shoreditch and Finsbury and early in 1954
a Sub-Committee visited the premises used by the Finsbury Council for
providing employment for aged persons.
The Ilford Council have appointed a special Sub-Committee to consider
in detail the possibility of establishing in Ilford an employment
scheme for elderly people similar to that in operation in the Metropolitan
Borough of Finsbury.
The laundry service for the cleansing of soiled bed linen and personal
clothing continued to operate throughout the year, proving of invaluable
assistance in the care of some very dffiicuit cases.
During the year 30 persons were assisted and 2,889 articles were
laundered."