A History of the Ministry of Information, 1939-46

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18 - 16 -

THE SMALL CONSUMER

Purpose .

In December 1942 the Ministry of Fuel and Power inaugurated a scheme for priority supplies to the small consumer of coal. By February the Ministry wished to know what success the scheme was having. This Inquiry was, therefore, carried out immediately, in order that if difficulties were revealed they could be dealt with before the period of greatest need was at an end.

Method .

The Inquiry was again addressed to housewives. They were chosen from the lowest income groups only, since it was thought that these would cover the bulk of small consumers. Five simple questions were asked of them to ascertain their dependency on coal, the extent to which they had suffered from a shortage of coal during the month prior to the day the questions were addressed to them, and their position with regard to two factors which given rise to such a shortage, those are, registration with a coal merchant, and the shortage of space at their disposal.

Sample .

The sample was a purposive one; that is, the number of interview, to be carried out was distributed through the Civil Defence regions in proportion the population in each, and within each region housewives whose chief wage earner had a wage of either up to £3.12.0. or between £3.12.0. and £5.0.0. were chosen in roughly equal numbers.

A numerical analysis of the sample in the relevant categories is as follows:-

Analysis by Income Group

Up to £3.12.0 1013
£3.12.0 - £5.02.0 1102
Unclassified 48
2163

These figures ire roughly proportionate to the comparative representation of each of the two groups in the population of which they compose 75%.

Analysis by Region

North 100 South West 139
North East 225 Wales 107
North Midlands 164 Midlands 193
East 149 North West 314
London 326 Scotland 221
South 129 South East 92
Total: 2163

These numbers are proportionate to the distribution of the population between those regions.

The interviews were carried out in:-

Newcastle Nottingham
Jarrow Derby
Chester Loughborough
Leeds Cardiff
Bradford Bridgend
Pontefract Pontypridd
Sheffield Leicester
Doncaster
Rotherham London
Peterborough Manchester
Spalding Rochdale
Huntingdon Oldham
Aylesbury Liverpool
Wendover Wallasey
Buckingham Widnes
Southampton - Winchester Preston
Bristol Bolton
Bath Blackburn
Glasow
Exeter Greenock
Crediton Wishaw
Hamilton
Birmingham
Nuneaton Tunbridge Wells
Warwick Maidstone
Westerham
Wolverhampton
Walsall Ipswich
Dudley
20 - 18 - 21 - 19 -

THE SITUATION OF THE SMALL CONSUMER IN January AND February 1943

Since many of the questions are interrelated all the tables are first analysed by income, and then by region, the physical background to the social situation.

Analysis by Income Group .

Dependence upon coal .

Housewives were asked whether they were solely dependent upon coal for heating their main living room.

91% of all housewives said they were so dependent and there is a small but significant difference between the two income groups.

Solely dependent on coal

Up to £3.12.0 £3.12.0 to £5.
Solely dependent on coal 94% + 89%

It should be remembered however, that in both income groups the degree of their dependence on coal is probably greater than would appear from the figures since alternative methods of heating, such as a small gas or electric fire, are often too expensive or too small to provide adequate alternatives.

Shortage of Coal .

The next question asked whether or not the household had been without coal during the past month.

8% of all households had been without coal.

In the lower income group the figure was 9%

In the upper income group the figure was 7%

There were no differences between the two groups in the length of time they had been without coal, a summary is as follows:-

Without coal
Up to 3 days 66 38%
3 days to 1 week 46 27%
1 week to 2 weeks 20 12%
Over 2 weeks 27 16%
Did not know 13 7%

Thus, of those who had been without coal, 65% had been without for a week or less, and 12% for between a week and a fortnight.

When the 12% who had been without coal for between a week and a fortnight are combined with the 16% who had been without coal for between two weeks and a month, they still amount to less than 2% of the whole sample. This means that out of three-quarters of the whole population less than 2% had been without coal for more than a week during January and February.

Registration with Coal Merchants .

Altogether 96% of the housewives interviewed were registered with a coal merchant.

There were no differences between the two income groups in the proportions registered, and those who were not registered had not been without coal to any significantly greater extent than those who were registered.

Storage Capacity .

A proportion of housewives had to make an estimate when asked what storage capacity they possessed for coal, but within the limitation set by the question (see Questionnaire) these were considered to be reliable.

Up to £3.12.0 £3.12.0 to £5. No answer All Incomes
No. % No. % No. % No. %
None 8 1 2 - - - 10 -
Up to 5 cwts. 209 21 141 13 3 6 353 16
Over 5 cwts. 761 75 932 85 41 86 1734 81
Don’t know and no answer 35 3 27 2 4 8 66 3
SAMPLES 1013 100 1102 100 48 100 2163 100

In all, 81% of the households sampled had storage space for over 5 cwt. of coal.

There is a differences between the two income groups in that while the lowest income group had 75% of its households with a storage space for over 5 cwt. of coal, the upper income group had 85% of its households with a similar capacity.

At the other end of the scale 8% of the lower income group had either no storage space or space for up to 2cwt. only, compared with 4% in the upper income group.

It may be assumed from these figures that storage capacity is not important as a factor in coal shortages, yet an analysis of the storage capacity of those households which had been without coal during the previous month shows that those with little storage capacity had been the most affected.

Storage Capacity Without Coal in last month
Up to 2 cwt. 16%
2 to 5 cwt. 8%
Over 5 cwt. 4%

The position may be this. Generally speaking, storage space does not beyond a certain point influence the building up of stocks. 75% of the households in the lowest income group have a capacity of over 5 cwt., yet in the previous Inquiry it was shown that only 36% of the households in the same group had stocks of over 5 cwt.

On the other hand it is evident from the relationship of storage space to coal shortage shown above, that a storage capacity of 2 cwt. or less does mean that insufficient stocks can be laid in to tide over a period when the coal-man does not call or coal is unobtainable. Storage space for an additional two or three hundredweight would probably cut down by three-quarters the number who had gone short of coal.

What it amounts to is this, in 8% the population covered by the lower income group, (roughly 3,600,000 households) the only solution to the problem of keeping them supplied with coal is a regular weekly, or bi-weekly delivery of coal to their doors.

[3] In the Heat in of Dwellings Inquiry, carried out in March 1942 it was discovered that 95% of all kitchens were heated by coal, 95% of all kitchen living rooms and 48% of bedrooms. The sample from which these figures were obtained was equivalent to the lowest income group above.

22 - 20 -

REGIONAL ANALYSIS

Dependence upon Coal .

Dependence on coal decreases roughly from the North and West to the South and East, although there are two exceptions to this, the North West being less dependent on coal than the regions surrounding it, and the South being more dependent on coal than the regions around.

In Scotland, the North and North East regions, 98% of all households are solely dependent on coal.

Wales, the Midlands, and South are centred around 96%.

The East, N. Midlands, and N. West, are centred around 90%.

London and the South East are least dependent on coal, 83% and 76% of their households saying they are dependent. The South West may be grouped with these regions also.

It is probably significant that in the previous inquiry into Fuel Stocks both London and the South East were the two regions best stocked with coke. This is probably the alternative fuel in use rather than gas and electricity.

Shortage of Coal .

The regions in which the chief shortages occurred were Scotland, where 12% said they had been without coal during the last month, the North West and Midlands, where 11% and 10% said the same thing. These are all industrial areas with a high proportion of the lower income groups.

The percentages of those who had been without coal in the other regions were:-

were : -

North 7% South 4%
North East 8% South West 6%
North Midland 2% Wales 8%
East 8% South East 2%
London 9%

Apart from the North Midlands and South East, which suffered little from shortage, and possibly the South, the remaining regions did not deviate greatly from the national average of those who were without coal during this period.

The total number of households in the sample which were without coal amounted to 172. This figure, when broken down by region and quantity, is insufficient to give any reliable results, consequently no analysis has been made of it.

Registration with a Coal Merchant .

There are slight differences between the regions in the proportions registered with a coal merchant, but they are not sufficient to be noteworthy.

Storage space.

It might be assumed from what has already been written that the chief limitation of storage space would occur in the highly industrialized regions. This analysis shows it to be the case.

None Up to 5 cwt. Over 5 cwt. Quantity Unspecified Sample
No. % No. % No. % No. % No. %
Northern - - 2 2 82 79 20 19 104 100
North Eastern - - 42 19 179 80 4 1 225 100
North Midlands 2 1 6 4 151 92 5 3 164 100
Eastern - - 11 7 137 92 1 1 149 100
London - - 86 26 237 73 3 1 326 100
Southern 1 1 8 6 115 89 5 4 129 100
South Western 2 1 11 8 125 90 1 1 139 100
Wales - - 21 20 86 80 - - 107 100
Midlands 1 1 3 2 185 95 4 2 193 100
North Western 3 1 12 4 279 88 20 6 314 100
Scotland 1 - 139 63 80 369 1 - 221 100
South Eastern - - 12 13 78 85 2 2 92 100
All regions 10 - 353 16 1734 81 66 3 2163 100

The regions with the greatest proportion of households with storage space for under 5 cwt. of fuel are:-

Scotland 63% Wales 20%
London 26% North East 19%

The high figure for Scotland reflects, of course, the numerous tenement dwellings there, and can be related to the figures above, where it is recorded that 12% of households had been without coal during the past month in Scotland.

In a number of regions the position is obscured by the high proportion not knowing or not answering about their storage space. This is so in the case of the North and North West, where 19% and 6% respectively gave this answer. In the North 2% had storage space for less than 5 cwt. and in the North West 5% had less than 5 cwt.

The remaining regions occupy a middle or advantageous position

South East 13% (Less than 5 cwt.) South 6%
South West 8% North Midland 4%
East 7% Midland 3%

It might be noted that the regions given as having the highest proportions of households with less than 5 cwt. storage capacity, are also the regions which have the highest proportions with a storage capacity of less than 2 cwt. The figures are:-

Storage capacity less than 2 cwt.
Scotland 33%
Lodon 6%
Wales 3%
23 - 21 - 24 1 25 2 26 3 27 4 28 29 30

CONCLUSIONS .

Dependence on coal is almost complete in both income groups and through all regions save the South East.

Shortage of coal has not been great, but it was concentrated in the lowest income groups, and particularly in Scotland, mainly, perhaps, through storage difficulties.

Registration with coal merchants had little affect on the shortages which occurred in individual households.

Storage capacity is not generally a factor restricting the building up of stocks, but where it is a factor is in the lower income groups. Restricted storage space here does seem to leave these households at the mercy of the weekly call of the coal-man. This is well exemplified by Scotland.

Serial No. ...

WARTIME SOCIAL SURVEY NEW SERIES NO. 24

LIGHTING OF DWELLINGS INQUIRY

Interviewer: ......

Date: ......

Town: ...... Children of school age? 1
Name of Electricity Co: Chief Wage earner: Under £187 p.a. 1
£187 to £260 p.a. 2
£260 to £520 p.a. 3
Dwelling House 1 Occupation ......
Flat 2
Age of Dwelling: Pre-War 1 Cost of Electricity Per Unit ......
Post-War 2
Family Size: 1 – 3 1 Where possible given details from Electricity Account:- ......
4 – 7 2
7 and Over 3
1. Is it necessary to use artificial lighting in the daytime in: (a) Midsummer (June) ......
(b) Midwinter (December) ......
(a) (b)
1. In Scullery or Working Kitchen: Never 1 Never 1
Occasionally 2 Occasionally 2
Often 3 Often 3
No S or W.K. 4 No S or W.K. 4
2. In Kitchen Living Room: Never 1 Never 1
Occasionally 2 Occasionally 2
Often 3 Often 3
No K.L.R. 4 No K.L.R. 4
3. In Sitting Room or Parlour Never 1 Never 1
Occasionally 2 Occasionally 2
Often 3 Often 3
No S.R. or P. 4 No S.R. or P. 4
2. Are you able to see well, all right, or badly by artificial light when you are doing the following jobs:
(a) Washing up Well 1
All right 2
Badly 3
N.A. 4
(b) Preparing food Well 1
All right 2
Badly 3
N.A. 4
(c) Cooking Well 1
All right 2
Badly 3
N.A. 4
(d) Reading or Sewing in Kitchen Living Room Well 1
All right 2
Badly 3
D.N.A. 4
N.A. 5
(e) Reading or Sewing in Sitting Room or Parlour Well 1
All right 2
Badly 3
D.N.A. 4
N.A. 5
(f) For the children to see when they are doing homework in the Kitchen Living Room Well 1
All right 2
Badly 3
D.N.A. 4
N.A. 5
(g) For the children to see when they are doing homework in the Sitting Room Well 1
All right 2
Badly 3
D.N.A. 4
N.A. 5
3. Are you able to see well, all right or badly by daylight when you are doing the following jobs:
(a) Washing up Well 1
All right 2
Badly 3
N.A. 4
(b) Preparing food Well 1
All right 2
Badly 3
N.A. 4
(c) Cooking Well 1
All right 2
Badly 3
N.A. 4
(d) Reading or Sewing in Kitchen Living Room Well 1
All right 2
Badly 3
D.N.A. 4
N.A. 5
(e) Reading or Sewing in Sitting Room or Parlour Well 1
All right 2
Badly 3
D.N.A. 4
N.A. 5
(f) For the children to see when they are doing homework in the Kitchen Living Room Well 1
All right 2
Badly 3
D.N.A. 4
N.A. 5
(g) For the children to see when they are doing homework in the Sitting Room Well 1
All right 2
Badly 3
D.N.A. 4
N.A. 5
4. Have there been any accidents or mishaps which you think were due to bad lighting in the last month?
Describe and state whether it happened in daylight or artificial light:-
5. Observations with Mirror
Is there visible sky from the following positions:-
(a) Centre of bottom of sink Yes 1
No 2
N.A. 3
(b) Work table in kitchen Yes 1
No 2
N.A. 3
(c) Top of cooker Yes 1
No 2
N.A. 3
(d) 3 feet above floor, 5 feet from sitting room or parlour fireplace Yes 1
No 2
N.A. 3
6. How does the amount of fuel you use for lighting compare with the amount you use for other needs? Would you say that you use most fuel for - (i) Room Heating ...... 1
(ii) Water Heating ...... 2
(iii) Cooking ...... 3
or (iv) Lighting ...... 4
N.A. 5
7. The following are a number of fuel saving hints, have you tried any of them?
(i) Do you use fire bricks? Yes 1
No 2
N.A. 3
(ii) Have you “lagged” or insulated (by packing cloth or paper around) your hot water tank? Yes 1
No 2
N.A. 3
(iii) Do you often have to use your oven for one dish only? Yes 1
No 2
N.A. 3
(iv) Do you use the damper on the kitchen boiler? If so do you find it possible to keep it in most of the time? Yes 1
No 2
D.N.A. 3
N.A. 4
8. Have you or has anybody in your family worked out your fuel target? Yes 1
No 2
N.A. 3
If YES
9. Do you know how many fuel units you have got Yes 1
No 2
N.A. 3
To ALL
10. What kind of things will you be able to do to keep your fuel consumption down?
11. Have you stored any fuel for the winter? Say what.
12. Where do you get sunshine in your present house in winter? Room In the morning In the afternoon
1. Scullery or Working Kitchen 1 1
2. Kitchen Sitting Room 2 2
3. Sitting Room or Parlour 3 3
4. Bedrooms 4 4
13. (a) If you had a new house in which room would you choose to have the sun in the morning if it was possible to have it in one room only. Room Morning
1. Scullery or Working Kitchen 1
2. Kitchen Sitting Room 2
3. Sitting Room or Parlour 3
4. Bedrooms 4
(b) In the afternoon Room Afternoon
1. Scullery or Working Kitchen 1
2. Kitchen Sitting Room 2
3. Sitting Room or Parlour 3
4. Bedrooms 4
14. SIZE OF LAMPS TOTAL WATTS DIMENSIONS OFFICE USE POSITION OF FITTINGS FITTINGS Walls CEILING OFFICE USE METER READINGS BY ELECTRIC LIGHT PRE WAR LAMPS OFFICE USE
ROOM Length Breadth Area per Sq.Ft. Watts per Sq.ft. Ceiling 1 Direct a 1 Light 1 Light 1 Factor A Unshadowed L.R. or Parlour 5ft. from Fire A
Bracket 2 Direct b 2 Dark 2 v. Light 2 B As used
Movable 3 S. Direct 3 Scullery or W. Kitchen
General 4 Sink Cooker Table
S. Indirect 5 A B A B A B
Indirect 6
Code Below Code Below Code Code
1. Scullery or Working Kitchen 1st. 2nd. 1st. 2nd. 1st. 2nd.
2. Kitchen Living Room
3. Sitting Room or Parlour

15.

ROOM HOUR LIGHT USED TOTAL TIME OF OFFICE USE OFFICE USE OFFICE USE
Last Evening This Morning RISING BED
1. Scullery or Working Kitchen
2. Kitchen Living Room
3. Sitting Room or Parlour
WARTIME SOCIAL SURVEY FUEL STOCKS INQUIRY New Series No. 29
Town...... Family Size......
Region...... Adults......
Children......

Income of Principal Wage Earner

Up to £3.12.0 1 Number of Inhabited Rooms......
£3.12.0 to £5 2 (excluding bathrooms, closets)
£5.0.0 to £10 3 (etc. and unfurnished attics)
Over £10 4

1. What stocks of the following fuel have you now?

2. What stocks did you have last year this time?

Coal and Coalite Coke Anthracite or other solid fuel Total
1 Now 2 Last Year 1 Now 2 Last Year 1 Now 2 Last Year 1 Now 2 Last Year
None - - - - - - - -
Up to & including 1 cwt. 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
Up to & including 2 cwt. 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2
Up to & including 3 cwt. 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3
Up to & including 4 cwt. 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4
Up to & including 5 cwt. 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5
Over 5 cwt.& up to 10 cwt. 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6
Over 10 cwt. & up to 20 cwt. 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 7
Over 1 ton & up to 5 tons 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8
Over 5 tone & up to 10 tons 9 9 9 9 9 9 9 9
Over 10 tons X X X X X X X X
Quantity unspecified Y Y Y Y Y Y Y Y

Date......

Interviewer......

Serial No.

Wartime Social Survey

New Series 34

FUEL INQUIRY
Civil Defence Region 1 7 Income Group:
2 8
3 9 Up to £3.12.0 1
4 10 £3.12.0 to £5 2
5 11 House 3
6 12 Flat 4

1. Are you solely dependent on coal for heating your main living room?

Yes

No

2. (a) Have you been without coal during the last month?

Yes

No

D.K.

(b) How long for?

Up to 3 days 1
3 days to 1 week 2
1 week to 2 weeks 3
2 weeks to 3 weeks 4
3 weeks to 4 weeks 5
N.A. 6

3. Are you registered with a coal merchant?

Yes

No

N.A.

4. How much coal can you store?

Up to 2 cwts. 1
2 to 5 cwts. 2
5 - 10 cwts. 3
10 - 20 cwts. 4
Over 20 cwts. 5
D.K. 6
N.A. 7

Interviewer......

Date......

CROWN COPYRIGHT RESERVED

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