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During the year the Council approved expenditure as under:-
(a) advances of £496,150 under the Housing (Financial Provisions) Act, 1958
in relation to 329 houses.
(b) improvement grants of £10,671 under section 30 of the Housing (Financial
Provisions) Act, 1958 in relation to 30 houses.
(c) repairs loans of £2,419 under section 43 of the Housing (Financial
Provisions) Act, 1958 in relation to 17 houses.
(d) Repair costs of £936 under section 9 of the Housing Act, 1957, for work
in default in relation to 4 houses.
GENERAL MATTERS
BURIALS. Under Section 50 of the National Assistance Act, 1948 it is the
duty of the Council to arrange the burial of any person who has died in the district,
where it appears that there are no suitable arrangements for the disposal of the body.
During 1958 three burials were arranged in accordance with this section.
PUBLIC MORTUARY The public mortuary is situated in the grounds of Holy
Trinity Church, The premises are out-of-date and unsuitable for post-mortem examination
or the retention of a body for other than a very short time, so by arrangement
with the Coroner, bodies are taken direct to or transferred to Acton or Hampton Mortuaries
The Council pays a charge made for the use of these mortuaries,
MEDICAL EXAMINATION OF STAFF, For superannuation or other purposes 153 members
of the Council's staff were referred to the Health Department for medical examination.
HEALTH EDUCATION. Posters issued by the Central Council for Health Education
continued to be displayed on the boards formerly used by the Empire Marketing Board,
During the year, the Medical Officer of Health gave talks to several organisations in
the Borough on various aspects of the health services. The staff are fully aware of
the opportunities given by their contact with the people for drawing attention to
matters bearing on health and hygiene Other Departments have co-operated by displaying
health educational material,
PERSONS IN NEED OF CARE AND ATTENTION, Section 47 of the National Assistance
Act, 1948, places the responsibility on the Council of taking action to secure 'the
necessary care and attention for persons who:-
(a) are suffering from grave chronic disease or, being aged, infirm or
physically incapacitated, are living in insanitary conditions, and
(b) are unable to devote to themselves, and are not receiving from other
persons, proper care and attention'.
Despite the growing interest of statutory and voluntary agencies in the welfare
of the aged, cases come to the notice of the Department of neglected aged persons
living in insanitary conditions. Such persons are usually most reluctant to accept
assistance or to go to hospital or institution, but fortunately, in most cases, peaceful
persuasion secures their co-operation in some degree and the necessary action can
be taken. In no case was it necessary to seek authority to apply for an Order for
compulsory removal to hospital or institution.
LAUNDRY SERVICE, One of the problems in the care of aged and sick persons in
their own homes is soiled clothing and bed linen, Where washing facilities are poor
and the persons concerned neither have nor can afford assistance, the cleansing of
clothing and bedding presents serious difficulty. In some cases, action under Section
84 of the Public Health Act, 1936. is the only solution and the Council has made
arrangements with a laundry firm for the cleansing of articles where the Medical
Officer of Health has issued the certificates required by the Act, The number of
cases in which such action has been necessary is small, but the provision of these
facilities has met a genuine need.
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