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35
At the present time, with the exception of some 60 courts, the houses of Bethnal
Green mostly stand on fairly wide and well paved streets. Apart from those of the
principal thoroughfares, they are mostly two storeys in height, and many of considerable
ago.
Tho total number of inhabited houses in the parish is 18,493, of which
14,411 are rated at 20l. per annum or under, and are mostly let to weekly
tenants.
The old Weavers' houses can be distinguished at once by their large windows on
the upper floor extending over the width of the house. Often houses are to be seen
in which the upper floor is reached by a staircase situated in the lower room.
These houses accordingly are not conveniently adapted for occupation by more than
one family.
Of the older houses a small proportion are built back-to-back, and hence through
ventilation is impossible, and again in some other instances houses not back-toback
have no back windows, but in no case did we find in such dwellings more
than one room on each floor, and the disadvantages of this arrangement are therefore
less than when there are two, the one behind tho other (see Appendix). There
is, however, some interference with the proper ventilation of the staircase, and
although this has in some instances been provided by ventilating openings in the
roof, in others such provision is still wanting. Elsewhere there is open space in
tho rear of houses in accordance with more recent legislation, but this is too often
encroached upon by wooden outbuildings, especially erections for pigeons.
A fault common to many houses in the district is the situation of the ground
floor below the level of the street pavement. In numerous instances these houses
have no basement or cellars.
The difference between the level of tho floors and of the street pavement is
ascribed to the construction of the pavement at a date subsequent to the erection of
the houses; dwellings which formerly stood at a higher level than the roadway
having now become relatively lower. The result has been unfortunate, for owing
to the lower level of the floors, rain enters from the street, and the houses are often
damp and unhealthy (see Appendix).
A small number of houses again have the serious objection, that access to the
back yard, where is situated the watercloset, is unattainable for those living in
upper rooms except through the ground floor room (occupied commonly by another
family) or by way of a winding staircase from the ground floor through the cellars,
which are not of sufficient height to enable adults to walk erect. Basement cellars,
of the kind referred to, are unpaved, undrained, and damp, and become the ready
receptacle for filth of all sorts. The necessity for crouching in passing thus from
the front to the rear of the house is a serious obstacle to those who desire to obtain
entry into the back yard, and the effect is doubtless to raise questions as to the
fitness of these houses for occupation by more than one family (see Appendix).
But the condition which above all others characterises dwelling houses in Bethnal
Green is the dilapidated state in which they are allowed to remain. In street after
street houses defective in this respect were abundantly found in the course of our
inspection. Such houses showed badly paved yards, defective roofs, broken floors,
dirty walls and ceilings, broken plaster, dilapidated window frames, together with
faulty gutters and defective pointing of walls, giving facilities for damp to enter
(see Appendix).