London's Pulse: Medical Officer of Health reports 1848-1972
View report page
Hints from the Health Department. Leaflet from the archive of the Society of Medical Officers of Health. Credit: Wellcome Collection, London
Walthamstow 1938
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Walthamstow]
This page requires JavaScript
The progress of the scheme since 1935 may be seen from the following table:—
| Number on Roll. | Receiving Free Milk. | Available for Voluntary Milk. | Receiving Voluntary Milk. | Percentage receiving Voluntary Milk. | Total receiving Milk. | Percentage receiving Milk. | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| March, 1935 | 18,354 | 922 | 17,432 | 9,142 | 52.4 | 10,064 | 54.2 |
| October, 1935 | 17,691 | 1,370 | 16,321 | 8,056 | 49.3 | 9,426 | 53.28 |
| March, 1936 | 17,545 | 2,188 | 15,357 | 7,647 | 43.21 | 9,835 | 56.05 |
| October, 1936 | 17,144 | 2,705 | 14,439 | 7,652 | 52.09 | 10,357 | 60.41 |
| March, 1937 | 16,760 | 2,918 | 13,842 | 7,307 | 43.59 | 10,225 | 61.0 |
| October, 1937 | 16,526 | 3,549 | 12,977 | 7,463 | 46.3 | 11,102 | 66.63 |
| March, 1938 | 16,254 | 3,964 | 12,280 | 7,155 | 58.2 | 11,119 | 68.4 |
| October, 1938 | 15,912 | 3,926 | 11,986 | 7,255 | 60.5 | 11,181 | 70.2 |
The scheme has again been operated in every Department in
Walthamstow, and further generous acknowledgment must be made
to Head Teachers and their staffs generally.
The continued co-operation of the teaching staff is earnestly
sought, particularly to try and reach the ideal, when all children
(except those who have a definite dislike for milk and those who
are '"sensitive" to certain of its proteins) obtain at least one pint
per day of "safe" milk, i.e., efficiently pasteurised milk.
It is a local requirement of the scheme that only pasteurised
milk sold under licence shall be supplied, i.e., the cap on the
bottle should be labelled "pasteurised milk."
Bacteriological, etc., Control.— During the year, 17 samples
of milk were obtained by the Chief Sanitary Inspector for analysis.
Sixteen were examined for bacteriological counts and all were
satisfactory, the highest being 48,000 per mill., and the lowest
1,800 per mill.
Fifteen were examined by the phosphatase test and all were
satisfactory.
Vacation Scheme.— Six schools were selected as distribution
centres during the school holidays in 1938. The number of meals
served is shown below:—