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During 1962, it was decided to broaden the scope of departmental enquiries
into the needs of elderly people. Instead of awaiting a call for action when
distress was very great, a friendly visit by the Council's Welfare Officer to
persons receiving the Meals on Wheels Service was to be made and an enquiry
form discreetly completed Any needs ascertained were to be supplied if possible
through the various voluntary and statutory agencies and arrangements made for
intermittent or regular visiting by suitable persons if the need for this was
brought out. There were, of course, also during the year, appeals for distressed
cases, but not so many as in 1961, and it was found, too, that the amount of
visiting requested was far greater than the number of persons available to make
the visits. A form of chain reaction was set up by this method, as visitors
found further needs during their visits, referred them to the Department and
so other help was able to be given, A large scale drive by the Mayor of the
Borough for more voluntary visiting and help met with an enthusiastic response.
It has been stressed many times that in no way must people be visited or
helped against their inclinations, no idea of interference into private lives
must ever be sanctioned, and the scheme is working very well now. The amount
of information on needs, acknowledged needs, of elderly persons living alone
should presently give an indication of the most important social provisions
which should be made to supply these needs.
150 persons in receipt of meals during the year were visited and their
reports on the first visit in each case have been summarized. The list of needs
ascertained was quite considerable and with the exception of arrangements for
review of glasses, provision of transport, holidays for handicapped persons,
admission to old people" s welfare homes and provision of ground floor housing,
all the needs in the following list were dealt with.

In addition, 7 homes were found to be using dangerous oil heaters and 3
had unsuitable or dangerous fires. These were remedied.
It will be seen that the needs were extremely varied and as in the case
of several of them, danger to the health or even the safety of the old people
was inherent in the lack of provision for these needs, that here there is a
considerable problem. The number of persons on the meals list is still much
below the number of elderly persons living alone and unaided.
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