Report on Home Visits by Assistant housing officer – March, April, May 1971

No of home visits = 140

“      “     “     revisited = 17

As the assistant housing officer was in attendance at the Glasgow Overspill Exhibition in Glasgow for 6 weeks, visiting during this period was not possible. This has meant that tenants have not been visited quite so soon after the arrival in the town as they would otherwise have been.

The new Tenants’ Handbook has provided quite a good deal of local information which, up to the present time, the Assistant Housing officer has been giving to tenants.  It was found in almost every case that a good neighbourly spirit has helped newcomers to settle down quite quickly.

Information about social activities has been given although this has been difficult because the list is presently being revised and will be presented in booklet form. Tenants have been referred to Mr Aldous if they require information about particular clubs or societies.



These flats in Holbart Street, Craigshill, are a typical example
of Livingston Development Corporation
built housing of the 1960s and 1970s.



Criticism has been made about lack of express bus services to enable men to obtain employment in Glasgow or its environs during the present jobless situation in the town: litter in Beech Grove - it would appear that the bin stores can be opened by children and once opened the rubbish sacks provided a happy hunting ground for dogs: the noise from warm air heating fans in the Burbank area is still being mentioned – tenants have been told that experiments are being carried out to try to alleviate this.

A considerable amount of time was spent with one tenant who had arrived here with very little in the way of furniture and who is a very sick woman. After giving support during the initial settling in period, the tenant’s had to be handed over to the Social Work Department for their professional expertise.

Two warning systems were ordered for elderly persons – they were delighted to have this form of reassurance.

Several tenants who have expressed the desire to help the community in a practical way have been passed on to various organisations.

11.6.71.

Report on Home Visits by Assistant housing officer – Tenancies commencing Feb 1971

No of home visits = 87

“      “     “     revisited = 18

The names and addresses of elderly persons were notified to the Secretary of the Livingston Old People’s Welfare Council.

One Gentleman offered to deliver copies of “newsflash” to his neighbours. This information was passed to Editors.

Six tenants (breadwinners) were found to be unemployed. They had relinquished their jobs on coming to Livingston and had been unable to find employment here.

There were few complaints made this month. Storage heaters in the Ladywell area have proved troublesome and people complain at the length of time they have to wait for repairs.

Ladywell housing in the 1970s
(Ladywell 6 Housing Alderbank LDC/IN/209)

One or two criticisms have been made and these have been passed on to the appropriate department. The transport position continues to be under fire and one tenant complained that the information given to them by Glasgow overspill was misleading because it state that there were plenty of buses to and from Glasgow but omitted to say that it takes 1 hour 55 minutes to travel there. There was also one complaint that the Department of Employment & Productivity in Glasgow had inferred there was plenty of employment available in the Livingston area – this, the tenant had found to be untrue. One tenant complained that she had found she had to pay 9d (old pence) per packet more for her babies (she has twins) milk and on checking with the Health Visitor at Craigshill, it was established that the previous M.O.H did not approve the proprietary baby foods being sold at the Welfare Clinic and this policy has been carried on. In this case, the cost to the tenant was quite considerable.