Description: Opening title reads 'SLUM CLEARANCE AND RE-HOUSING By the Council of the Metropolitan Borough of Hackney, 1935/FILM PRODUCED BY HACKNEY BOROUGH COUNCIL PUBLIC HEALTH DEPARTMENT/SLUM CLEARANCE - THE FIRST STEP. INSPECTION OF PROPERTY BY BOROUGH COUNCIL'S HOUSING INSPECTORS'. Two men in pin-striped suits with bowler hats are seen on an urban residential street with a long measuring tape, measuring across the road. A small child plays in the foreground and a dog runs past; a woman with a large pram pushes past the men.

Title: 'Plan of a condemned area and typical slum property'. A man runs a pen down a street map. We then see a woman hanging out laundry in a narrow alleyway/courtyard full of plants. Another courtyard has a large number of windows and doors opening onto it; the area looks run-down but quite tidy. A row of Victorian terraced houses a battered wooden fence in front, and green space and trees around. Children play in a yard near a rusty shed. Laundry blows in the wind in a small garden full of debris (wood, metal) behind a house with a ramshackle roof. Another very long row of terraced houses, and a shot of the messy courtyards behind - many of the houses have tiled roofs that clearly need repair.

Title: 'Some of the conditions found in slum property'. An elderly woman in a floral dress sits by a mantlepiece with pots and pans to one side, looking up at the ceiling, which we then see is in a terrible state, as are the walls. A living room with floral wallpaper, in considerable disrepair, is inspected by a man in a suit and bowler hat who spreads out his arms to demonstrate how small the room is, and easily reaches up to the ceiling. More shots of the house, which is in a state of terrible disrepair and is extremely small. There is an outdoor toilet in a narrow alleyway at the back of the house. Using a knife, the man peels back part of the wallpaper to show that the walls are infested with thousands of insects. We see various disgusting close up shots of the crawling creatures in the walls and ceiling.

Next title: 'THE PROBLEM OF THE BUG'. Two large bed bugs, shot close-up, crawl around on a white sheet. We then see a sleeping child is in the bed; he turns and scratches. Next title: 'Arranging removal to new dwelling' - an elderly person sits outside a house spoken to by a standing man in a suit and bowler hat. Next title: 'Preparing for a clean start. The new home is to be a clean home - no dirt - no vermin.' A woman washes the floor in a courtyard. Next title: 'Occupiers discard old furniture and useless articles for destruction by Public Health Department at Disinfecting Station'. Men haul a sofa into a van, drive away, then are seen unloading a chair and other items including a rolled-up carpet and old pram. Shots of large piles of discarded furniture. All these items are then burned.

'"MOVING DAY"/As a precaution the contents of each van are treated by Hydrogen Cyanide Gas'. More furniture is seen being loaded onto a van as families watch. 'THE FOLLOWING DAY/Test of soft goods for freedom from gas'. A man in a suit and bowler hat checks some furniture. 'Bedding is not gassed but is treated by steam disinfection.' The van drives up a road with houses and trees before pulling in next to a building where men in white jumpsuits unload rolled up packages from the back. Everything is put into huge metal steaming machines in the Cyanide Fumigation Chamber at Hackney's Disinfecting Station, then removed later and loaded back onto the van.

Next title: 'Fumigation of old property to prevent spread of vermin by sale of old building material'. Shots of the interior and exterior of a Hackney house with windows and doors taped up. We then see a whole row of terraced houses all boarded up in this way. Next title: 'Baths and cleansing facilities for staff engaged in slum clearance work'. A door is labelled 'Private staff only'. We then see a tiled bathroom with shower, and a shirtless man drying himself off.

Next title: 'The passing of the slum.' Shot of a totally derelict house from outside. 'The old - Banister Street before clearance'. A row of small, scruffy terraced houses recede into the distance, with some children sitting in the street. Various shots of Victorian houses and young residents. A shot shows a row of back gardens with laundry in the wind. Next title: 'The New - Banister House (On Banister Street Site}/No. of dwellings...160/No. of rooms...480/No. of persons...669.' We then see Banister House (the building survives today): a five-story brick housing block with somewhat Art Deco features. Children in shorts play happily outside in the sunshine and a woman with a wide-rimmed hat walks past.

Next title: 'Council Estate Southwold Road'. We see another large housing block with Art Deco features. 'Site of Shacklewell House'. A man in a coat and bowler hat walks past some narrow Victorian houses. 'Dwellings erected by the Bethnal Green Housing Association/Brent House' - another Art Deco building - 'Shakespeare House' - another building with large balconies. The next title - 'Lennox House' - is followed by a shot of a large building (still standing) shaped like a Ziggurat with wide balconies on both sides; England and Union Jack flags hang from the balconies. A 1930's ambulance with LCC written on the side drives past. More shots of spacious, modern 1930's housing estates and gardens follow. We see women with prams and a large new playground with slides, see-saws and swings. The final shot shows a large building site, suggesting that there is much housing still to be built.