Sanitary districts were established in
England and Wales
England and Wales () is one of the Law of the United Kingdom#Legal jurisdictions, three legal jurisdictions of the United Kingdom. It covers the constituent countries England and Wales and was formed by the Laws in Wales Acts 1535 and 1542. Th ...
in 1872 and in
Ireland
Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...
in 1878. The districts were of two types, based on existing structures:
*Urban sanitary districts in towns with existing local government bodies
*Rural sanitary districts in the remaining rural areas of
poor law union
A poor law union was a geographical territory, and early local government unit, in Great Britain and Ireland.
Poor law unions existed in England and Wales from 1834 to 1930 for the administration of poor relief. Prior to the Poor Law Amendment ...
s.
Each district was governed by a
sanitary authority
Sanitary districts were established in England and Wales in 1872 and in Ireland in 1878. The districts were of two types, based on existing structures:
*Urban sanitary districts in towns with existing local government bodies
*Rural sanitary dis ...
and was responsible for various public health matters such as providing clean drinking water, sewers, street cleaning, and clearing
slum
A slum is a highly populated Urban area, urban residential area consisting of densely packed housing units of weak build quality and often associated with poverty. The infrastructure in slums is often deteriorated or incomplete, and they are p ...
housing.
In England and Wales, both rural and urban sanitary districts were replaced in 1894 by the
Local Government Act 1894
The Local Government Act 1894 ( 56 & 57 Vict. c. 73) was an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that reformed local government in England and Wales outside the County of London. The act followed the reforms carried out at county leve ...
(
56 & 57 Vict. c. 73) by the more general
rural district
A rural district was a type of local government area – now superseded – established at the end of the 19th century in England, Wales
Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. I ...
s and
urban districts. A similar reform was carried out in Ireland in 1899 by the
Local Government (Ireland) Act 1898
The Local Government (Ireland) Act 1898 ( 61 & 62 Vict. c. 37) was an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland that established a system of local government in Ireland
Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots diale ...
.
England and Wales
Sanitary districts were formed under the terms of the Public Health Act 1872 (
35 & 36 Vict. c. 79). Instead of creating new bodies, existing authorities were given additional responsibilities. The sanitary districts were created on 10 August 1872, when the act received
royal assent
Royal assent is the method by which a monarch formally approves an act of the legislature, either directly or through an official acting on the monarch's behalf. In some jurisdictions, royal assent is equivalent to promulgation, while in othe ...
, and the existing authorities were able to exercise their new powers from their first meeting after that date. The powers and responsibilities initially given to sanitary authorities in 1872 were relatively limited. They had to appoint a medical officer, but other powers were generally permissive rather than compulsory. Three years later the
Public Health Act 1875
The Public Health Act 1875 ( 38 & 39 Vict. c. 55) is an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, one of the Public Health Acts, and a significant step in the advancement of public health in England.
Its purpose was to codify previous me ...
(
38 & 39 Vict. c. 55) substantially broadened the scope of powers and expectations on sanitary authorities.
Urban sanitary districts were formed in any
municipal borough
A municipal borough was a type of local government
Local government is a generic term for the lowest tiers of governance or public administration within a particular sovereign state.
Local governments typically constitute a subdivision of ...
governed under the
Municipal Corporations Act 1835
The Municipal Corporations Act 1835 ( 5 & 6 Will. 4. c. 76), sometimes known as the Municipal Reform Act, was an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that reformed local government in the incorporated boroughs of England and Wales. The le ...
, in any
improvement commissioners Boards of improvement commissioners were ''ad hoc'' urban local government boards created during the 18th and 19th centuries in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and its predecessors the Kingdom of Great Britain and the Kingdom of Irel ...
district formed by private act of Parliament, and in any
local government district
Local may refer to:
Geography and transportation
* Local (train), a train serving local traffic demand
* Local, Missouri, a community in the United States
Arts, entertainment, and media
* ''Local'' (comics), a limited series comic book by Bria ...
formed under the
Public Health Act 1848 (
11 & 12 Vict. c. 63) or
Local Government Act 1858
A local board of health (or simply a ''local board'') was a local authority in urban areas of England and Wales from 1848 to 1894. They were formed in response to cholera epidemics and were given powers to control sewers, clean the streets, regulat ...
.
The existing governing body of the town (municipal corporation, improvement commissioners or local board of health) was designated as the urban sanitary authority.
When sanitary districts were formed there were approximately 225 boroughs, 575 local government districts and 50 improvement commissioners districts designated as urban sanitary districts. Over the next nineteen years the number changed: more urban sanitary districts were formed as towns adopted legislation forming local boards and as additional boroughs were incorporated; over the same period numerous urban sanitary districts were absorbed into expanding boroughs.
Rural sanitary districts were formed in all areas without a town government. They followed the boundaries of existing
poor law union
A poor law union was a geographical territory, and early local government unit, in Great Britain and Ireland.
Poor law unions existed in England and Wales from 1834 to 1930 for the administration of poor relief. Prior to the Poor Law Amendment ...
s, less the areas of urban sanitary districts. Any subsequent change in the area of the union also changed the sanitary district. At the time of abolition in 1894, there were 572 rural sanitary districts.
The rural sanitary authority consisted of the existing poor law guardians for the rural parishes involved.
The
Local Government Act 1894
The Local Government Act 1894 ( 56 & 57 Vict. c. 73) was an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that reformed local government in England and Wales outside the County of London. The act followed the reforms carried out at county leve ...
(
56 & 57 Vict. c. 73) brought an end to sanitary districts in England and Wales. In boroughs, the corporation was already the sanitary authority. All other urban sanitary districts were renamed as
urban districts, governed by an urban district council. Rural sanitary districts were replaced by
rural districts, for the first time with a directly elected council. It was a requirement that whenever possible a rural district should be within a single
administrative county
An administrative county was a first-level administrative division in England and Wales from 1888 to 1974, and in Ireland from 1899 until 1973 in Northern Ireland, 2002 in the Republic of Ireland. They are now abolished, although most Northern ...
, which led to many districts being split into smaller areas along county lines. A few rural districts with parishes in two or three different counties persisted until the 1930s.
The
Local Government Act 1972
The Local Government Act 1972 (c. 70) is an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that reformed local government in England and Wales on 1 April 1974. It was one of the most significant acts of Parliament to be passed by the Heath Gov ...
made district councils,
London borough
The London boroughs are the current 32 districts of England, local authority districts that together with the City of London make up the administrative area of Greater London, England; each is governed by a London borough council. The present ...
councils, the
City of London Corporation
The City of London Corporation, officially and legally the Mayor and Commonalty and Citizens of the City of London, is the local authority of the City of London, the historic centre of London and the location of much of the United Kingdom's f ...
, and
Inner Temple
The Honourable Society of the Inner Temple, commonly known as the Inner Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court and is a professional association for barristers and judges. To be called to the Bar and practice as a barrister in England and Wa ...
and
Middle Temple
The Honourable Society of the Middle Temple, commonly known simply as Middle Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court entitled to Call to the bar, call their members to the English Bar as barristers, the others being the Inner Temple (with whi ...
sanitary authorities.
Ireland
A system of sanitary districts was established in Ireland by the
Public Health (Ireland) Act 1878, modelled on that in England and Wales.
Urban sanitary districts were established in the following categories of towns:
* Boroughs with
municipal corporation
Municipal corporation is the legal term for a local governing body, including (but not necessarily limited to) cities, counties, towns, townships, charter townships, villages, and boroughs. The term can also be used to describe municipally o ...
s (under the
Municipal Corporations (Ireland) Act 1840)
* Towns having
town commissioners under
private act
Proposed Bill (proposed law), bills are often categorized into public bills and private bills. A public bill is a proposed law which would apply to everyone within its jurisdiction. A private bill is a proposal for a law affecting only a single p ...
s of parliament
* Towns having town commissioners under public acts and having a population exceeding 6,000
The existing corporation or commissioners became the urban sanitary authority. The
Local Government Board for Ireland
The Local Government Board for Ireland was an agency of the Dublin Castle administration that liaised with the various local authorities in Ireland. It was created in 1872 and lasted until partition in 1921–22.
History
The Board was created ...
, created by the same act, could designate other towns with commissioners as urban sanitary districts.
Rural sanitary districts were formed in the same way as those in England and Wales, from
the poor law unions with the boards of guardians as the rural sanitary authorities.
The urban and rural sanitary districts were superseded in 1899, under the
Local Government (Ireland) Act 1898
The Local Government (Ireland) Act 1898 ( 61 & 62 Vict. c. 37) was an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland that established a system of local government in Ireland
Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots diale ...
, by
urban and rural districts. Unlike rural sanitary districts, rural districts could not cross county boundaries: so for instance, Ballyshannon rural sanitary district was split into Ballyshannon No. 1, Ballyshannon No. 2 and Ballyshannon No. 3 rural districts in Counties Donegal, Fermanagh and Leitrim respectively. The Local Government Act 1925 abolished rural districts in the
Irish Free State
The Irish Free State (6 December 192229 December 1937), also known by its Irish-language, Irish name ( , ), was a State (polity), state established in December 1922 under the Anglo-Irish Treaty of December 1921. The treaty ended the three-ye ...
, creating a single rural sanitary district for the non-urban portion of each county, called the "county health district". The Local Government (Amendment) (No. 2) Act, 1934 allowed this district to be split on request of the county council;
this happened only in
County Cork
County Cork () is the largest and the southernmost Counties of Ireland, county of Republic of Ireland, Ireland, named after the city of Cork (city), Cork, the state's second-largest city. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster ...
, the largest county, which was split into three health districts.
Scotland
Sanitary districts were not formed in Scotland. By the Public Health (Scotland) Act 1867 (
30 & 31 Vict. c. 101) public health duties were given to the town councils, commissioners or trustees of
burgh
A burgh ( ) is an Autonomy, autonomous municipal corporation in Scotland, usually a city, town, or toun in Scots language, Scots. This type of administrative division existed from the 12th century, when David I of Scotland, King David I created ...
s, and to
parochial boards. In 1890 the public health duties of parochial boards were allocated to the newly created
county council
A county council is the elected administrative body governing an area known as a county. This term has slightly different meanings in different countries.
Australia
In the Australian state of New South Wales, county councils are special purpose ...
s, administered by district committees.
See also
*
List of sanitary districts in Buckinghamshire
*
List of sanitary districts in Dorset
*
List of sanitary districts in Middlesex
Sources
*''Local Government Areas 1834 - 1945'', V D Lipman, Oxford, 1949
*''Guide to the Local Administrative Units of England'' (2 vols.) F A Youngs, London, 1991
*Public Health Act 1872 (35 & 36 Vict. c.79)
*Public Health Act 1875 (38 & 39 Vict. c.55)
*Public Health (Ireland) Act 1878 (41 & 42 Vict. c.52)
Status details for Rural Sanitary Districtvisionofbritain.org.uk
References
{{Terms for types of country subdivisions
Sanitary districts of the United Kingdom
1870s establishments in the United Kingdom
1890s disestablishments
Defunct types of subdivision in the United Kingdom