Resettlement_Department_Annual_Report_1969-1970 — Page 27

accommodation-not to speak of the squatter huts which were being replaced it was necessary and justifiable in the context of emergency housing at that time.

68. During the years the older estates have become very overcrowded both by natural increase and by a policy of allowing relatives to be added. Originally the policy was very strict: in general only the head of household was allowed to add his dependents. However, in 1956 the policy was changed to allow any person on the tenancy card to add his or her dependents, provided that the resultant increase in room density did not reduce the room space for each adult to less than 24 sq. ft. This led to a large increase in persons living in the older estates, and in 1963 these persons were added to tenancy cards, thus creating the present unsatisfactory high densities and gross overcrowding. The policy was made slightly more restrictive in 1966 when new husbands of female residents could no longer be added. During the year, new rules were approved by the Resettlement Management Select Committee and the Housing Board which restrict the additions that can be permitted and which allow only the main householder to add those persons dependent on him.

69. Since some estates are more overcrowded than others, each estate has a fixed density above which families are qualified to have more room. As empty rooms become available due to movement out of the estate, families living at densities above the 'qualifying density' were offered the room in strict order of overcrowding priority. This is known as 'internal decantation'. However, it took some time to go through the list of eligible families and to allocate vacant rooms, and numerous complaints were received from unsuccessful families. On the 1st March, 1970 a new system was introduced whereby empty rooms are advertised in each estate and filled by the applicant family with the highest density. During the year 4,251 families comprising 32,023 persons were given extra space.

70. The Housing Board has recommended a six-year provision of 120,000 new places to relieve overcrowding, which means that a quota of 20,000 places a year is allocated for this purpose. This is known as 'external decantation'. There are some difficulties in filling this quota, since the rooms are usually in outlying unpopular estates and only families at densities of over 24 sq. ft. are eligible. However, during the year 20,584 persons in 3,169 families moved to new estates, which means that by both internal and external decantation a grand total

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