London's Pulse: Medical Officer of Health reports 1848-1972
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Hints from the Health Department. Leaflet from the archive of the Society of Medical Officers of Health. Credit: Wellcome Collection, London
Richmond upon Thames 1965
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Richmond upon Thames]
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The Act does not apply to premises (a) where only self-employed persons work,
or (b) used for "family businesses" i.e. where no-one is employed other than close
relatives of the employer or (c) where the total time worked by employees is less than
21 hours weekly.
Premises to which the Act applies are required to be registered by the local
authority and the principal matters on which standards are laid down relate to cleanliness
— overcrowding — temperature — ventilation — lighting — sanitary accommodation
— washing facilities — drinking water — clothing accommodation — seats for
sedentary work — first aid facilities — safety and operation of machinery — fire precautions.
During the year 444 additional premises were registered under the Act and the total number of premises registered and inspected at the end of the year is summarised below:
| Total number of registered premises. | Number inspected during year. | |
|---|---|---|
| Offices | 606 | 323 |
| Retail Shops | 1,074 | 640 |
| Wholesale Shops | 53 | 29 |
| Catering Establishments | 166 | 97 |
| Fuel Storage Depots | 5 | 1 |
| 1,904 | 1,090 |
A great measure of co-operation has been received from employers in the Borough
in implementing the new standards and no legal proceedings were instituted for contraventions
of the Act; in addition, the Council granted no certificates exempting
premises from the standards laid down.
A special survey was made in the last quarter of the year on both natural and
artificial lighting in offices and shops to enable the Minister to consider whether more
precise lighting standards are required, and the following narrative was submitted.
(1) General Impression of the Standard of Lighting.
Artificial Lighting.
The standard of artificial lighting in shops and offices was found almost always to
be good in the sections open to the public, but sometimes less satisfactory in other parts.
Offices were more satisfactory than shops.
Natural Lighting.
This was sometimes inadequate and varied considerably. Most shops had adequate
light only near the large display window and this did not reach to the rear of the larger
shops.
Staircases, landings, wash places, etc., which generally had filament lamps were
sometimes inadequate, and w.c.'s, especially external ones in yards, occasionally had no
artificial or natural light.
(2) Unsatisfactory Lighting.
Certain trades such as retail builders merchants and hardware shops where the
goods were of a less attractive kind, and where drab surroundings reduced the reflected
light, had unsatisfactory lighting, but these were few.
A more disquieting cause of unsatisfactory lighting was due to an effort by owners
to reduce the cost of lighting. The explanation given by a Manager for this was that
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