Report to the Minister of Health by the Departmental Committee on Qualifications, Recruitment, Training and Promotion of Local Government Officers.

  • Great Britain. Committee on Local Government Officers.
Date:
1934
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Report to the Minister of Health by the Departmental Committee on Qualifications, Recruitment, Training and Promotion of Local Government Officers. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    since the war control has been relaxed, and when by the Local Government Act of 1929 the administration of the poor law passed from the boards of guardians to the county councils and county borough councils, a new Order regulating poor law administration (the Public Assistance Order, 1930) was made by the Minister of Health. The appointments of certain senior poor law officers (medical officers, masters, matrons, relieving officers, public assistance officers, superintendents, stewards, chaplains and senior nurses) are required to be reported to the Minister, and for the majority of these appointments, qualifications are prescribed in the Order. The Minister is empowered by the Poor Law Act, 1930, to dismiss any poor law officer. Senior poor law officers cannot be dismissed except by or with the consent of the Minister. Other poor law officers can be dismissed by the local authority without the Minister’s consent. (ul) Medical Officers.—Sanitary authorities have been required to appoint medical officers of health ever since 1872 (in London since 1855), and from the beginning appointments in the provinces were subject to central control where the sanitary authority were willing to accept repayment of part of their salary from exchequer funds. Similar control was applied to London appointments a little later. The position now is that all medical officers of health are required to be legally qualified practitioners and, in most cases, to possess special qualifications in public health. The appoint- ment of any medical officer of health, part of whose salary is repayable out of the county fund, is subject to the approval of the Minister in accordance with the Regulations made by him. Finally, medical officers appointed for certain special forms of clinical work (maternity and child welfare, tuberculosis, venereal diseases) are required by Order of the Minister to hold certain special qualifications. Generally speaking, the dismissal of full-time medical officers of health requires the Minister’s approval. (iu) Sanitary Inspectors.—The appomtments of all metro- pohtan sanitary inspectors and of any other, part of whose salary is repayable out of county funds, must be approved by the Minister of Health, and they must possess a certificate of qualification. This qualification is a certificate of proficiency in the duties of a sanitary inspector issued after examination by the Royal Sanitary Institute and Sanitary Inspectors’ l“xamination Joint Board. Generally speaking the dismissal of all senior sanitary inspectors requires the Mi£nister’s approval. (iv) Clerks of County Councils.—When county councils were created in 1888, clerks of the peace became ex officio clerks of the county councils. As clerks of the peace they held office ‘* during good behaviour,’’ and their appointments and salaries
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