Story of Wandsworth
Into the 50s
Girl receiving a vaccination
at the Eileen Lecky Clinic,
Putney, 1961
Although the war ended in 1945, it affected daily life for some years to come. Food, fuel and other goods remained in short supply and continued to be rationed, sometimes more severely than during the war. Despite the hardships, people looked forward to a new start.
1945 saw the election of a new Labour government that introduced the National Health Service and other welfare reforms. Local councils continued the huge task of re-housing those whose homes had been destroyed during air raids. People from Commonwealth countries, many of whom had served Britain during the war, came to seek a new life, some settling in the Wandsworth area.
