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In the nineteenth
Century, no official support system or benefits were available for
those who were unemployed, elderly, sick or disabled. People had
to work to earn money, and so if they were unable to for any reason,
they had no means of paying rent or buying food. It was decided
that help should be provided for the needy, and so the Poor Law
Amendment Act, or New Poor Law, was passed in 1834. Parishes (like
council wards) joined funds in order to build a workhouse - a place
for the impoverished and destitute to live and work. Several parishes
were grouped together into Unions, so that many of the establishments
were known as union workhouses.
The general
attitude towards the poor was one of disdain, and the belief that
they deserved their unfortunate status was widely held. Conditions
in the workhouses were deliberately basic to act as a deterrent,
and to discourage people seeking an "easy" option. It was meant
as a last resort solution to poverty, providing shelter, clothing
and food. Only the most desperate people turned to the workhouses
for help.
Once admitted
to the workhouse, people were known as inmates, and would be categorised
according to their status. Men, women and children were segregated,
meaning families were separated, some never to be reunited. Many
children were born into workhouse life, as unmarried mothers were
cast out from society and forced to seek shelter there.
Meals were
basic at best. Cheap, filling food such as gruel (a thick porridge-like
sludge), bread and cheese, broth, rice milk, and potatoes were most
common. The workhouses were strictly run, with many rules which
were to be adhered to at all times, with consequences for those
who flouted them. Jobs were found for the inmates, either inside
the workhouse to maintain the building and the residents, or sent
out as cheap labour to fund the workhouse. The institutions had
infirmaries for the sick, and employed some of the more adept inmates
as nurses. Many workhouses developed and became hospitals in the
20th century.
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