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
Heston and Isleworth 1949
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Heston and Isleworth]
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GENERAL STATISTICS
| 1948 | 1949 | |
|---|---|---|
| Population (Registrar-General's estimate) | 106,200 | 106,900 |
| Number of inhabited houses (rate books) | 28,041 | 28,217 |
| Number of houses erected during year | 303 | 161 |
| Rateable Value of Borough | £983,465 | £970,555 |
| Sum represented by a penny rate | £3,896 | £3,964 |
| Live Births—male | 779 | 707 |
| Live Births—female | 766 | 742 |
| Birth rate per 1,000 population | 14.5 | 13.6 |
| Birth rate per 1,000 population (England and Wales) | 17.9 | 16.7 |
| Stillbirths—male | 15 | 15 |
| Stillbirths—female | 24 | 12 |
| Stillbirth Rate per 1,000 (live and still) births | 24.6 | 18.3 |
| Deaths—male | 491 | 573 |
| Deaths—female | 447 | 478 |
| Death rate per 1,000 population | 8.8 | 9.8 |
| Death rate per 1,000 population (England and Wales) | 10.8 | 11.7 |
| Infant Mortality rate | 29.8 | 17.3 |
| Infant Mortality rate (England and Wales) | 34 | 32 |
| Maternal Mortality rate | 0.6 | 2.0 |
| Maternal Mortality rate (England and Wales) | 1.0 | 1.0 |
VITAL STATISTICS
Population.—The population of the Borough at the 1931 census was 76,460 and the RegistrarGeneral's
mid-year estimate of the population for the year 1949 is total population 108,200 and civilian
population 106,900. Throughout this Report comment, tables of figures and rates refer to the civilian
population only.
Rateable Value.—The rateable value of the Borough for 1949 was £970,555 and the sum represented
by a penny rate was £3,964.
Inhabited Houses.—According to the rate books the number of inhabited houses at the end of
the year was 28,217. In relation to the estimated population this yields an average of approximately
4 persons per house. While this average appears to be low accurate information will not be available till
after the 1951 census.
Live Births.—The number of live births in 1949 was 1,449 as compared with 1,545 in 1948. The
birth rate was 13.6 per 1,000 population while that for England and Wales was 16.7 A lower birth rate
than this has only been recorded once (1941) for the Borough. The number of illegitimate births was
60 as compared with 51 for 1948. The proportion of live births which were illegitimate, expressed as a
percentage of the total live births, is shown below for recent years:—
1925-29 3.9 1945 7.5
1930-34 3.2 1946 6.3
1935-39 2.9 1947 4.2
1940-44 4.6 1948 3.3
1949 4.1
For England and Wales males always exceed females in live and still births, but this is not constant for smaller areas. The position in regard to the Borough since 1930 is shown below:—
Sex ratio: males per 100 females
| Year | Live Births | Still Births | Total Births |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1930 | 117 | 120 | 117 |
| 1931 | 109 | 100 | 109 |
| 1932 | 103 | 106 | 104 |
| 1933 | 108 | 113 | 110 |
| 1934 | 103 | 144 | 104 |
| 1935 | 106 | 116 | 106 |
| 1936 | 107 | 100 | 107 |
| 1937 | 111 | 52 | 109 |
| 1938 | 103 | 105 | 103 |
| 1939 | 110 | 132 | 111 |
| 1940 | 97 | 100 | 97 |
| 1941 | 102 | 120 | 102 |
| 1942 | 102 | 96 | 102 |
| 1943 | 107 | 95 | 107 |
| 1944 | 103 | 161 | 104 |
| 1945 | 107 | 95 | 107 |
| 1946 | 108 | 129 | 109 |
| 1947 | 109 | 181 | 110 |
| 1948 | 102 | 63 | 100 |
| 1949 | 95 | 125 | 96 |
It has been suggested that the sex ratio at birth might be an indication of social conditions, but a
study of the Borough records gives no support to this view. Others have suggested that the sex ratio at
birth is influenced by the ages of the mothers and the position in the family of the births but the necessary
local information to test this is not available. The national sex ratio at birth rose during both World Wars,
but no such change occurred locally. Since 1916 the local sex ratio at birth was less than 100 in 1919,
1922, 1926, 1940 and 1949.
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