Description:This photograph shows volunteers at work decorating a Sparkbrook property.
Improving the condition of properties had the potential to better the physical and mental well-being of Sparkbrook's residents. The large gloomy villas reflected a depressing mood and one of the objectives of the Sparkbrook Association's decorating schemes was to transform 'dark, dirty and unpleasant' living spaces into places of 'brightness, sunshine and comfort.' ( Voluntary work report by G Gaisford 1962-63.)
The quality of the local housing was a concern of Dr Barrow whose eye for workmanship is revealed in an anecdote in Stephen Gregory's voluntary work report. One of Sparkbrook's older residents who was an air-raid warden during the Second World War told him that she would visit air-raid shelters with a man from the Home Office "picking out mortar from between the bricks with her pencil to demonstrate the bad workmanship of the builders." (Voluntary work report by S Gregory, Jan-Aug 1963 p.3.)