| AdminHistory | The Improvement Committee was appointed by the Council in July 1875, its purpose being to 'receive official representations from the Medical Officer of Health, under the Artisans and Labourers’ Dwellings Improvement Act, 1875, on the unhealthiness of any area or areas within the Borough and to report thereon; and to prepare and submit from time to time to the Council for approval, a draft scheme or schemes for the improvement of any such area or areas, with estimates of cost, and generally carry into effect the provisions of the said Act with authority to employ such professional and other assistance as they deem necessary'.
This Act made the house owners responsible for keeping their properties in good order and gave local authorities the right to buy and demolish slums if they were not improved. Slum areas were breeding grounds for diseases like cholera and smallpox. The Improvement Committee was finally amalgamated with the Estates Committee during November 1899 (see BCC/1/AM). |