Housing, Town Planning, &c. Act 1919
| Jurisdiction | UK Non-devolved |
| Citation | 1919 c. 35 |
| Year | 1919 |
Housing, Town Planning, &c. Act, 1919.
(9 & 10 Geo. 5.) CHAPTER 35.
An Act to amend the enactments relating to the Housing of the Working Classes, Town Planning, and the acquisition of small dwellings.
[31st July 1919]
Be it enacted by the King's most Excellent Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Lords Spiritual and Temporal, and Commons, in this present Parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:
Part I.
Housing of the Working Classes.
Schemes under Part III. of Act of
1 Duty of local authority to prepare housing schemes.
(1) It shall be the duty of every local authority within the meaning of Part III. of the Housing of the Working Classes Act, 1890 (hereinafter referred to as the principal Act), to consider the needs of their area with respect to the provision of houses for the working classes, and within three months after the passing of this Act, and thereafter as often as occasion arises, or within three months after notice has been given to them by the Local Government Board, to prepare and submit to the Local Government Board a scheme for the exercise of their powers under the said Part III.
(2) scheme under this section shall specify—
(a ) the approximate number and the nature of the houses to be provided by the local authority;
(b ) the approximate quantity of land to be acquired and the localities in which land is to be acquired;
(c ) the average number of houses per acre;
(d ) the time within which the scheme or any part thereof is to be carried into effect;
and the scheme may contain such incidental, consequential and supplemental provisions (including provisions as to the subsequent variation of the scheme) as may appear necessary or proper for the purpose of the scheme.
(3) The Local Government Board may approve any such scheme or any part thereof without modification or subject to such modifications as they may think fit, and the scheme or part thereof when so approved shall be binding on the local authority; but if the Board consider the scheme inadequate they may refuse to approve the scheme and require the authority to prepare and submit to them all adequate scheme within such time as they may fix, or they may approve the scheme or part thereof subject to the condition that the authority prepare and submit to them a further scheme within such time as they may fix:
Provided that local authorities in preparing, and the Local Government Board in approving, any scheme shall take into account, and so far as possible preserve, existing erections of architectural, historic, or artistic interest, and shall have regard to the natural amenities of the locality, and, in order to secure that the houses proposed to be built under the scheme shall be of a suitable architecture and that the natural amenities of the locality shall not be unnecessarily injured, the Local Government Board may, in any case where it appears to them that the character of the locality renders such a course expedient, require as a condition of their approval the employment by the local authority of an architect to be selected from a panel of architects nominated for the purpose by the Royal Institute of British Architects.
(4) Before the Local Government Board finally approve a scheme, the local authority shall furnish to them estimates of the cost of the scheme and of the rents expected to be derived from the houses provided under the scheme.
(5) If the Local Government Board consider as respects any local authority that an occasion for the preparation of a new scheme has arisen, they shall give notice to that effect to the local authority, and thereupon such an occasion shall be deemed to have arisen.
(6) Where the local authorities concerned or the Local Government Board are of opinion that a scheme should be made affecting the areas of two or more local authorities, such a scheme shall be prepared by the local authorities jointly and the local authority of each area to which any part of any such joint scheme applies may, or, if the Local Government Board after giving the local authority an opportunity of being heard so direct, shall carry out that part of the joint scheme, and for the purposes of this subsection ‘local authority’ shall, in any case where the Local Government Board consent, and subject to any conditions which the Board may prescribe, include a county council.
(7) Local authorities in preparing, and the Local Government Board in approving, schemes shall make inquiry respecting and take into account any proposals by other bodies and persons to provide housing accommodation.
(8) Where any proposals as to the provision of houses for the working classes have before the passing of this Act been submitted to the Local Government Board by a local authority and those proposals have been approved by the Board, either before or after the passing of this Act, the proposals may, if the Board so direct, be treated, for any of the purposes of this Act, as if they were a scheme submitted and approved under this section.
2 Duty of local authority to carry out scheme.
2. It shall be the duty of a local authority on which obligations are imposed by any such scheme to carry that scheme into effect within such time as may be specified in the scheme or within such further time as may be allowed by the Local Government Board.
Power of County Councils and Local Government Board to act in place of Local Authorities.
3 Power to authorise county council to act in place oflocal authority.
(1) Where the Local Government Board are satisfied that a local authority have failed or are not prepared to fulfil their obligations as to the preparation of schemes under this Act, or their obligations under any such scheme, or that for any other reason it is desirable that any such obligation should be performed by the County council instead of by the local authority, the Board, after considering the circumstances of the case and giving the local authority and the county council an opportunity of being heard, may, if they think fit, by order, transfer to the council of the county, in which the district of the local authority is comprised, the obligation to prepare and carry out a scheme, or to carry out in whole or in part the provisions of a scheme prepared by the local authority.
(2) Where the Board make an order under this section, the order may, for the purpose of enabling the county council to give effect to the order, apply any of the provisions of the Housing Acts or section sixty-three of the Local Government Act, 1894 , with such modifications and adaptations as appear necessary or expedient:
Provided that the local authority shall be entitled to appeal to the Local Government Board if, in their opinion, the amount of the expenses, which the county council require them to defray or propose to charge against their district, is excessive or unreasonable, or against any refusal by a county council to make an order under the said section sixty-three vesting in the local authority all or any of the powers, duties, property, debts, and liabilities of the county council in relation to the powers transferred to them, and upon any such appeal the Board may make such order as they may deem just, and an order so made shall be binding on the county council and the local authority.
(3) This section shall apply in cases where a joint scheme has been, or in the opinion of the Board ought to be, prepared with the substitution or references to the local authorities concerned and their districts for references to the local authority and the district of the local authority.
4 Power of Local Government Board to act in place ofthe local authority.
(1) There the Local Government Board are satisfied that a local authority, or, in cases where any powers or duties of a local authority have been transferred to a county council, such council, or, in cases where a joint scheme has been or in the opinion of the Board should be prepared, the local authorities concerned, have failed to fulfil their obligations as to the preparation of schemes under this Act or their obligations under any such schemes, the Board may, after considering the circumstances, of the case, and after giving the local authority, authorities, or county council an opportunity of being heard, themselves prepare and carry out a scheme or take such steps as may be necessary to carry out any scheme prepared by the local authority or council, or by two or more local authorities jointly, and shall for that purpose have all the powers of a local authority under the Housing Acts, and those Acts shall, with the necessary modifications and adaptations, apply accordingly.
(2) Any expenses incurred by the Board in the exercise of such powers as aforesaid shall in the first instance be paid out of moneys provided by Parliament, but the amount certified by the Board to have been so expended, and to be properly payable by a local authority, shall on demand be paid to the Board by the local authority and shall be recoverable as a debt due to the Crown, and the payment of the sum so payable to the Board shall be a purpose for which the local authority may borrow under Part III. of the principal Act.
5 Power to act in default of local authority underParts I. and II. of principal Act.
5. Without prejudice to any other powers for enforcing the provisions of the Housing Acts, where the Local Government Board are satisfied...
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