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A MEDICAL OFFICER'S VIEW OF RE-HOUSING REQUESTS
A survey has been made in the Borough of what people do in fact say that they want in
the way of housing. These requirements are not exigent; perhaps not very imaginative; otherwise
put; they don't want much but they know what they want.
The necessity for shelter and living space is taken for granted, so under these heads
the only comments are about what people object to.
Shelter:
Roofs which let the rain in are disliked, and recognised as a sign of
general neglect of the property.
Living Space:
(i) Overcrowding is less easily endured when it follows from "not having
a place of one's own with a front door": frequently (and especially
disliked) with in-laws, or in a home of two or three rooms with shared
facilities in half a house.
(ii) When the family is grown up and dispersed one of the pleasures of
older people lies in entertaining each other. For this a spare bedroom
is required and lack of it is a true hardship.
(iii) Mice and black beetles: sharing accommodation with these courageous
commensals is much disgusted. This is a point in favour of concrete
construction, which mice find difficult.
It might be supposed from the existing housing stock in the Borough that style in
domestic architecture has absolutely no effect on the inhabitants. This is not true. Up to a
point, the customer will stand anything; but beyond that, general acceptance, it seems, would
depend on market pressure. Formerly these limits were closely determined by the speculative
builder and they have not greatly altered today.
Thus many normal sensible women feel their situation repulsive when their homes are
embedded in an extensive tract of concrete. In the circumstances there is nothing they can do
about it. When they contemplate their surroundings they sit and cry and cry.
There are some disadvantages in housing with which, from experience, the public is
very familiar. These are mainly incidental to large scale constructions. There are notorious
difficulties which arise when very many dwelling units, are concentrated into one monolithic
block.
Transport of sewage, and of personnel in and out of the building, is in fact not
distributed evenly through the twenty four hours, and may over-tax the facilities provided. In
the largest blocks the lifts are a matter of incessant complaint. During the busy hours, some
are monopolised by tradesmen; when one lift out of several breaks down (which happens
frequently) the extra loading increases the risk to all the others. A large block is apt to
contain many children; prevented (when possible) from playing in the corridors(l), their main
occupation becomes the disablement of the lifts. All this is contrasted with what is regarded
as the natural method of getting in and out of one's house through the street door. An additional
complaint against lifts is the common approach by ramp or steps.
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