Social Work Department: Reports and statistics

<span class="wrapper"><p>For an annual report of the work of St Thomas' Hospital including the Samaritan Fund and the work of the Lady Almoner's Department for 1924 see H01/ST/A/059/C/001. The Greater London History Library has copies of the annual reports of the Lady Almoner's Department, Samaritan Fund and Northcote Trust for 1926 - 1927, 1932, and 1936 - 1937. From 1947 to 1986 reports of the Social Service Department were included in the annual reports of St Thomas' Hospital. See H01/ST/A/059/A/051-086.</p> <p>For further information see An Adventure in Social Work by Cherry Morris (ref H01/ST/J/004/001) and an information sheet compiled in 1985 (ref H01/ST/J/002/032)</p></span>

The history and annual reports of the Northcote Trust (ref H01/ST/J/03/001-004,J/04/001) were transferred to the Greater London Record Office in 1967 - 1968. The other records of the Social Work Department were transferred to the Greater London Record Office by Miss Cecilia Wright on 18 November 1985 (Acc 2207).

The Social Work Department was founded in 1905 when Miss Anne Cummins was appointed the first Lady Almoner at St Thomas' Hospital. Her aim was to establish 'a complete system of medical social work touching all the patients and not a selected few, a system which should be part and parcel of the hospital, functioning as an ancillary service to the medical, nursing and administrative services, and also closely linked with the work of state and voluntary agencies in the outside world' (H01/ST/J/02/001). She was enabled greatly to expand the scope of her work by means of the Cicely Northcote Trust, founded in 1909 by Mr Hugh Northcote as a memorial to his sister.

When Miss Cummins retired in 1929, she was succeeded by Miss Cherry Morris. She was in turn followed by Miss A B Read, Head Almoner, then Principal Medical Social Worker 1946 - 1970. In 1964 the Almoner's Department was renamed the Social Service Department and by 1970 had become known as the Department of Social Work. In 1974 it was transferred from the health authority to the London Borough of Lambeth Department of Social Services.