London's Pulse: Medical Officer of Health reports 1848-1972

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Heston and Isleworth 1953

[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Heston and Isleworth]

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In the census, the rooms counted were the usual living rooms, bedrooms and kitchens, but
sculleries, kitchenettes, bathrooms, etc., were excluded, and on that basis the average number of rooms
per occupied structurally separate dwelling was 4. Broadly speaking, more than 2 persons per room
constitutes overcrowding by Housing Act standards, and it will be seen that overcrowding is greatest
in the Isleworth North, Isleworth South, and Hounslow Heath wards. At the census, 321 households
were living at more than 2 persons per room and of these, 206 (64 per cent.) were in shared dwellings.
In 1931, the census showed 3.7 per cent. of persons in private households living at more than 2 persons
per room, so during the twenty intercensal years, there has been considerable abatement of overcrowding.
The relation of structurally separate dwellings to households is shown in the table on page 8.
It should be noted that (a) 2,836 dwellings were occupied by 2 or more families, (b) the dwellings fall
short of the number of private households by 2,742, and (c) that on the day of the census, 334 dwellings
(121 unfurnished) were vacant. At the 1921 census, the number of dwellings was 84 per cent. of the
number of families, as compared with 91 per cent. in 1951, so building and conversion of houses has
more than kept pace with the increase in private households.

Accompanying the increase in the number of dwellings, there has been a change in their size distribution as is shown below:—

No. of roomsPercentage of all dwellings
19211951
1-389
4-55471
6 and over3820

In other words, the expansion in the number of houses has been concentrated in the 4-5 room type.
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