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 1953
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Heston and Isleworth]
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GENERAL STATISTICS
1952 1953
Area in acres 7,218 7,218
Population (Registrar-General's estimate) 105,600 105,100
Number of inhabited houses (rate books) 28,879 29,090
Number of houses erected during year 249 368
Rateable Value of Borough £1,013,810 £1,030,335
Sum represented by a penny rate £4,146 £4,183
Live Births—male 632 675
Live Births—female 606 593
Birth rate per 1,000 population 11.7 12.1
Birth rate per 1,000 population (England and Wales) 15.3 15.5
Stillbirths—male 17 13
Stillbirths—female 16 11
Stillbirths Rate per 1,000 (live and still) births 25.9 18.6
Deaths—male 547 552
Deaths—female 520 514
Death rate per 1,000 population 10.1 10.1
Death rate per 1,000 population (England and Wales) 11.3 11.4
Infant Mortality rate 18.6 18.1
Infant Mortality rate (England and Wales) 27.6 26.8
Maternal Mortality rate Nil 0.8
Maternal Mortality rate (England and Wales) 0.7 0.8
VITAL STATISTICS
Population.—The Registrar-General's mid-year estimate of the population of the Borough for
the year 1953 is 105,100. The report on the 1951 census for the County of Middlesex was published
at the end of 1953 and the following information concerning the Borough has been extracted or compiled
from that report.
The population has risen from 30,863 at the 1901 census to 106, 847 at the 1951 census and the
increase was most rapid between 1921 and 1931. Most of the increase has been due to migration into
the Borough. The census showed that though 91.3 per cent. of the population were born in England,
only 41.5 per cent, were born in Middlesex. Apart from changes in the total of persons, there have
been changes in the age distribution as shown in the following table:—
Percentage age distribution of population at census.
| Census | Age in years | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0-4 | 5-9 | 10-14 | 15-19 | 20-29 | 30-39 | 40-49 | 50-59 | 60-69 | 70-79 | 80+ | |
| 1901 | 11.1 | 11.4 | 11.5 | 9.9 | 16.8 | 13.6 | 10.0 | 7.0 | 5.3 | 2.5 | 0.9 |
| 1911 | 11.7 | 11.4 | 10.5 | 8.8 | 16.0 | 15.0 | 11,1 | 6.8 | 5.2 | 2.7 | 0.8 |
| 1921 | 8.0 | 9.5 | 11.0 | 10.0 | 15.8 | 14.1 | 13.3 | 9.2 | 5.2 | 3.0 | 0.9 |
| 1931 | 8.1 | 8.3 | 7.2 | 7.8 | 19.0 | 17.5 | 12.7 | 9.4 | 6.1 | 2.9 | 0.9 |
| 1951 | 7.0 | 6.4 | 6.2 | 6.3 | 14.2 | 14.1 | 17.1 | 13.8 | 8.6 | 4.7 | 1.5 |
The change that has taken place during 50 years is shown graphically in Figure 1. In 1901, the
greatest concentration was the 0-14 year group, but by 1950 the concentration had moved to the 40-54
year group. There is no indication of the rise in the birth rate needed to reverse this movement and an
ever increasing number of elderly persons are having to be supported by a proportionately dwindling
number of younger people. The relative proportions in a population of "productive" and "non-productive"
persons is of great importance in a country with highly developed social and welfare services.
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