Catalogue description Poor Law Unions

CLASSIFICATION AND DESCRIPTION OF THE RECORDS

Between 1930 and the establishment of the County Record Office at Chichester in 1946, a large number of Guardians' records were destroyed; others appear to have been sent for salvage during the second world war, while some, of little consequence or interest, have been "weeded out" during listing to reduce the bulk of the documents. Every effort has been made to trace all the surviving material, but it is possible that some documents still remain forgotten in hospital attics and cellars, and the County Archivist of West Sussex will be pleased to hear of any further records which may come to light

The records of the jurisdiction of the Public Assistance Committees of the County Councils have been included in the catalogue, as numerous registers and other institutional records were used by both administrations

As the catalogue is, however, primarily concerned with the records of the Boards of Guardians, no attempt has been made to describe these records, which are, in any case, very similar in form to those of the period before 1930

Most of the classes of records are self-explanatory from their titles, but explanation may be necessary in a few cases

MINUTES. House or Visiting Committees supervised the running of the workhouse, members usually visiting weekly to hear complaints and to make suggestions for improvements. Boarding-out Committees were responsible for placing children in foster-homes

ACCOUNTS. General Ledgers contain accounts with officers, contractors and parishes, and for the running of the workhouse. Sometimes these ledgers were broken down into smaller units of Parochial Accounts and General and Personal Accounts; Treasurer's Ledgers are accounts of money debited and credited to the Treasurer of the union, and in one case a Treasurer's Day Book has survived. Loans Ledgers and Registers of Securities are concerned with money raised by the guardians from time to time when extensive building was necessary

OFFICERS. Most surviving documents deal with salaries and superannuation under the Acts of 1896 and 1911; some officers were required to give securities for the faithful performance of their duties

GENERAL ADMINISTRATION. This is naturally a very large class. Two unions in W. Sussex have General Registers, each containing a variety of different lists. The Register of Disputed Settlement referred to paupers whose chargeability to the union in question was in doubt, Settlement Report Books referred to the same class of pauper, and Registers of Removals listed those paupers who were found to be chargeable to another union, and sent back there

Relief Order Books were kept by the Clerk to the union as a record of orders for out-relief made by the Guardians in response to the applications of the Relieving Officers. These were also entered in the Relieving Officers' Application and Report Books (which also included applications to enter the workhouse). Out-relief Lists show the weekly records of out-relief given by the Relieving Officer

In some cases special classes of chargeable or non-resident poor were boarded out or sent to hospitals or institutions more suited to them (for example orphan children, epileptics, tuberculosis sufferers and mental defectives)

The records of the work of union Collectors are self explanatory, as are those relating to the care of children for whom the guardians were responsible. It was realised quite early that children should not, if possible, be kept in the workhouse, and they were usually boarded out and apprenticed when they were old enough

Of the miscellaneous records, one union in W. Sussex has bound volumes of original Orders of the Poor Law Commissioners and Poor Law Board. The Year Books listed are all for last years of the unions, and contain lists of guardians, committees and officers etc. Union maps and seal matrices have been preserved in other cases

THE WORKHOUSE. Again, many of these records are self-explanatory. The Indoor Relief List was a half-yearly record listing the inmates and the number of days for which each was maintained. The Creed Register was kept under the provisions of the Poor Law Amendment Act of 1863; the local minister of each religious denomination had the right to inspect it. The workhouse master had authority to punish certain offences committed by inmates. These and other more serious misdemeanours which the master was not empowered to deal with were entered in the Offences and Punishment Book for examination by the Guardians. On entering the workhouse, paupers were expected to change into clothing provided for them. Their own clothes were listed in the Clothing Register, and could be reclaimed when the owner left the institution. The Register of Tuberculosis Notifications was kept under the Public Health (Tuberculosis) Regulations, 1908; any cases in the care of the Guardians had to be reported to the District Medical Officer of Health. Under 30 & 31 Vict. c. 106 an inmate found to be suffering from mental disease or bodily disease of a contagious or infectious nature could, on a Report from the medical officer, be detained in the workhouse

Strict rules were laid down by the various Lunacy Acts for the care of lunatics and mental defectives in the workhouse, and these gave rise to a separate series of records. The Commissioners in Lunacy and later the Board of Control supervised their care and official inspectors visited the workhouse at regular intervals. These inspectors had the right to examine all records connected with lunatics and to register their findings on any particular patient in the Patients' Book

The series of Officers' Reports can be valuable in some cases but many are purely formal. In the Porter's Book were recorded the name and business of anyone entering or leaving the workhouse premises

Various account books for the running of the workhouse have survived, though in no very great bulk. Apart from the master's general accounts, the more specialised volumes relate to the workhouse farm or garden which was worked by the able-bodied inmates, and the produce of which was sold. Other lucrative employments were stone-breaking and wood-chopping. Accounts also had to be kept of alcohol and extra provisions issued (on the advice of the medical officer); tobacco and snuff were also allowed and accounted for in special cases

OTHER DUTIES OF THE GUARDIANS. The records of the non poor-law duties are rather sparse, though Assessment and School Attendance Committee Minutes survive for quite a number of unions. Only three unions in the whole County have Rural Sanitary Authority records, and virtually no vaccination or registration records have been preserved with those of the Guardians

No access to any record less than 50 years old without the permission of the County Archivist

• West Sussex
• Social services
• Social welfare

THE ENGLISH POOR LAW

EARLY HISTORY

The decay of medieval society led to a problem which the feudal system in its heyday had not had to face. The lord of the manor, though in many ways a despot, had the ultimate responsibility and interest in keeping his villeins healthy, and the church was always ready to give alms to the destitute, though it seems true to say that as time went on the presence of a great abbey in any vicinity gave rise to a collection of beggars, those "rogues and vagabonds" against whom the early statutes were mainly directed. The earliest statute aimed at dealing with the problem was that of 1388 (12 Ric. II, c. 7) which forbade vagrancy and ordered all impotent beggars to remain where they were at the passing of the Act or, if they could not be maintained there, to return to the place of their birth. This was purely a police regulation, and involved no consideration of the relief of distress. Later legislation provided various increasingly severe penalties for those who disobeyed the law of 1388, but within one hundred years the situation began to get out of hand. The end of the Wars of the Roses, and the release of thousands of soldiers and hangers-on of the armies for other occupations, the changes in rural economy in many areas from arable to sheep-farming and finally the dissolution of the monasteries threw a vast band of landless and workless vagrants upon the resources of the alms-givers, and the existing arrangements were no longer adequate

The Statute of 1531 (22 Hen. VIII, c. 12) introduced a new type of provision, the licensing by magistrates of beggars who were incapable of work, but the first statute which placed poor relief in the hands of the parish authorities was 27 Hen. VIII, c. 25 (1536). The clergy and church-wardens were to provide a special alms-box for voluntary contributions to be distributed to the impotent poor; private alms-giving was forbidden under pain of a large fine. The parishioners were to be exhorted to give alms, and various moral and civil sanctions were laid upon them by later Acts if they were tardy in doing so. Vagrancy remained an ever-increasing problem, and a short-lived Act of 1547 (1 Ed. VI, c. 3) provided for branding and slavery for persistent offenders; this barbarous Act was, however, soon removed from the statute book

An Act of 1572 created the office of overseer, and another of 1597/8 (39 Eliz., c. 3) lays down the rights and duties of these officers and orders their appointment by the justices

The next important statute was the famous Poor Relief Act of 1601 (43 Eliz., c. 2), at first regarded as a temporary measure and only made permanent in 1640, but on which poor-law administration for the next two hundred years was based

This provided for the yearly nomination, under the hand and seal of two or more justices, of two, three or four substantial householders (according to the size of the parish) as overseers of the poor. The duties of these overseers were to set the children and able-bodied poor to work, to raise a tax from the inhabitants of the parish to buy stock and tools for this purpose, and to relieve those paupers who were unable to work

The overseers were to keep an account of the sums collected and spent, which was to be delivered to the justices annually for audit. The Act provided penalties for inhabitants who refused to be taxed and overseers who failed to carry out their task properly. If a single parish should be unable to raise enough money to support its own poor, then the justices were empowered to levy a rate upon other wealthier neighbouring parishes. Poor children were to be apprenticed, and houses for the aged and disabled poor were to be erected on the parish waste

An Act of 1609/10 (7 James I, c. 4) orders the building of houses of correction to which all vagrants should be committed by the constables, but the next really important statute was the Poor Relief Act of 1662 (14 Chas. II, c. 12) which laid the foundation of the law of settlement. This Act specified that any stranger coming to reside in a parish who could neither rent a tenement of £10 annual value or find a security to indemnify the parish if he became chargeable, could be summarily sent back whence he came. Anyone settling temporarily in a neighbourhood had to bring a certificate signed by the officers of his own parish agreeing to his return there

Later statutes of 1685 (1 James II, c. 17) and 1691 (3 Wm. & Mary, c. 11) developed the 1662 Act. The former stipulated that to gain a settlement, a poor person must have stayed in a parish for 40 days after giving notice of his arrival to the parish officers; the latter ordered that the notice should be registered in a parish book, and read out to the congregation in church on Sundays. Service as a parish officer, payment of parish rates, residence in a parish, or being bound apprentice to or in service with a parishioner for a year, gave settlement even if no written notice had been presented. An Act of 1697 (8 & 9 Wm. III, c. 30) provides for the settlement certificate, by means of which a poor person could settle in any parish as long as he had a document from his old parish accepting responsibility for him if he became chargeable. A less sensible provision of the same Act was that every pauper in receipt of relief should be required to wear a badge, thus partially reviving the inhumane mark of distinction of the earlier Tudor Act. It seems unlikely, however, that this order was strictly enforced

This legislation did very little to improve matters, and the problem of poor relief continued to grow. The proper working of the law relied very much on the honesty and humanity of the overseers, and though the cost of relief was growing, the money paid in rates was often not used for the benefit of the poor

An Act of 1743-1744 (17 Geo. II, c. 38) was aimed at remedying certain defects, and increasing the control of the justices over parish overseers. Detailed accounts of relief given, stock bought and money received were to be drawn up and verified on oath before the justices. The accounts were to be open to inspection by any ratepayer. Any overseer who neglected his duty or embezzled the funds in his care was liable to a gaol sentence. Ratepayers were enabled to appeal to the justices against an alleged wrong assessment

The administration of parish workhouses varied considerably. These did not become general until the eighteenth century, and at first appeared mainly in the larger towns. A general Act (9 Geo. I, c. 7) was passed in 1722 permitting the parish officers to buy or rent houses in which to lodge or employ the poor. This Act also allowed for the union of two or more parishes where one was too small to support the cost of a workhouse alone. The parish officers could contract with private persons to maintain the poor in exchange for their labour. The Act of 1722 also introduced the "workhouse test", whereby persons refusing to go into the workhouse were to be denied relief. After 1722 the overall cost of poor relief in the country lessened considerably, but it is doubtful whether the lot of the poor was improved. The accent was on economy rather than humanity

GILBERT'S ACT AND AFTER

A series of Acts throughout the eighteenth century was aimed at making the administration of the Poor Law more efficient; the most important of these Statutes was Gilbert's Act of 1782 (22 Geo. III, c. 83). This Act repealed that part of 9 Geo. I, c. 7 which allowed the maintenance and hiring of the labour of the poor by contract, and considerably tightened up the administration of relief. Single parishes or groups of parishes were to be incorporated for poor-law purposes

A guardian to adjudicate upon applications for relief, was to be appointed by the justices for each parish and township, and the task of the parish officers was to be reduced, except in case of emergency, to collecting the poor rates. A suitable house for the reception of the impotent poor was to be purchased by the guardians, and a governor appointed by the justices to supervise it. This governor was to be responsible to a "visitor", again appointed by the justices, from a list of three suitable persons nominated by the guardians. The visitor's duties were regularly to inspect the poorhouse and to correct any faults or abuses therein

The guardians were to meet monthly, and to appoint one of their number as treasurer. The latter would keep the union accounts, allocate the cost of the upkeep of the poorhouse equally among the parishes concerned, and pay the bills incurred in its administration

The poorhouses were to be strictly for those poor people who were unable to work. Provision was made for the boarding-out of orphan children, but no child under seven was to be separated from its parents without their consent. It was to be the responsibility of the guardians to find work for the able-bodied unemployed, to make up any deficiency in their pay to a living wage and to prosecute those who refused to work. Anyone who considered that he was unjustly deprived of relief could complain to the justices. The Act also forbade the forcible removal of sick poor or pregnant women without a legal order of removal; it had been a common practice in some parishes for poor people who seemed likely to become a liability to be harried beyond the parish boundary by the constable and overseers

This Act had many valuable provisions, and in districts where parishes were united the poorhouses were run more efficiently than when each parish had its own. However, the Act was not compulsory and in any case it had several unsatisfactory clauses, especially one which allowed for monetary compensation of able-bodied paupers whose wages were low and whose families were large. It led to the "Speenhamland System" whereby a table was set out showing the income necessary to a poor family according to the price of bread. Labourers began to consider that they had a right to relief to make their wages up to the amount tabled irrespective of the amount or value of the work they had done, and the hardworking independent labourer who managed to keep his head above water was penalised while the idle man was encouraged. A general Act of 1795 (36 Geo. III, c. 23) extended out-relief of the able-bodied to the whole country and naturally enough, the poor rate continued to rise

Where Gilbert Unions had not been formed the corruption of the system grew worse. The more well-to-do people avoided the unpaid and arduous parish offices by paying others to take their turn. Consequently overseers were mainly ignorant people, many of whom could not read or write. When a more responsible person, for example, a tradesman, took office, he was liable to the importunities of his friends or customers. The fact that no officer served for longer than a year made the task even more difficult, as the overseers had no time to estimate the character and habits of those who applied for relief. As overseers frequently did all the work of their brother officers for part of a year instead of sharing the duties for the whole period, this unsatisfactory position was aggravated

The Act of 1819 (59 Geo. III, c. 12) improved matters slightly in this direction, by permitting the appointment of salaried overseers, and by putting the administration of relief into the hands of a select vestry specially elected for this purpose, and not to be confused with the "Select Vestries of Four and Twenty". This Act, however, was, like Gilbert's Act, permissive, and did not reach the greater part of the country; it was in any case deficient in not defining the relative powers of the vestry and the overseers, and of course the term "select vestry" was already suspect because of its associations with corruption in general parochial administration

BEFORE THE PASSING OF THE POOR LAW AMENDMENT ACT, 1834

The preliminary Report of the Poor Law Commissioners in 1834 gives an illuminating account of the state of affairs before the passing of the Poor Law Amendment Act, and it is obvious that matters were completely out of hand

Outdoor relief was given to the able-bodied pauper in a variety of ways. Very often his rent was paid for him, and the house in which he lived was always exempted from poor-rates. Frequently this led to the raising of rents beyond all proportion by the landlord, who knew that the parish must either pay up or find other accommodation for the pauper. Very seldom was relief in kind given in the way of food or clothing

Often relief was given in money, sometimes for odd days missed from private employment, but more frequently to save the parish from having to find work for the increasing numbers of able-bodied poor. The "Speen-hamland" system of augmenting starvation wages by relief from the rates was very prevalent; the amount of relief given varied considerably, but was regulated by the number of the family, and consequently encouraged early and improvident marriage. The "roundsman" system, whereby occupiers of property were obliged to employ paupers at a rate of wages fixed by the parish and depending not on the skill of the work-man, but on the size of his family was another source of abuse; the employer was repaid out of the poor-rate all that he advanced in wages above a certain sum. When the parish itself provided work for the paupers, there was often not enough for the number of able-bodied men available and consequently the independent labourer had to work harder to obtain the same pay as the man on the parish

The parish workhouses are criticised in the report with equal vigour, mainly for the extravagance with which they were run, though this criticism was probably more justified in large towns than in small rural communities

In spite of this worsening state of affairs there were many who did not favour a change of system. The lazy labourers were afraid that the responsibility for their families would come to rest entirely on them, while the employers were unwilling to pay a decent wage after having been subsidized for so long by the rates. The fact that rates would automatically be lowered was not admitted by the employers as an argument, as they found that while high rates were a ground for paying less rent, high wages were not. The landlord of slum properties, which were rate free, and whose tenants' rents were mainly paid by the parish, was another who was favoured by the old system

THE COMMISSION OF 1832-1834

An earlier commission of 1817, whose findings had led to the passing of the Act of 1819, had reported at length on the bad state of the administration of the poor laws at that date, but the political climate was not then such as would favour the institution of far-reaching changes

After the passing of the Reform Act of 1832, the government was in a stronger position to introduce legislation in the more representative House of Commons. In February, 1832, a Royal Commission on the Poor Law was appointed; the commissioners named were nine in number, and included Sturges Bourne, the chairman of the 1817 Commission, and Nassau Senior and Edwin Chadwick who were to prove the guiding geniuses of this one

The commissioners sent out a series of questionnaires, which were followed up by the researches of a group of assistant commissioners. The final report published in 1834 makes depressing reading

The Poor Law Amendment Bill, framed mainly by Nassau Senior, was introduced in the House of Commons in 1834, soon after the publication of the Commissioners' Report. It was the subject of a great deal of controversy, but after a stormy passage eventually received the Royal Assent in August of the same year

ABSTRACT OF THE POOR LAW AMENDMENT ACT 1834

Sections 1-14 Provide for the appointment of three commissioners as a central authority for the Poor Law, who are to report yearly to the Secretary of State; the commissioners to have powers to appoint a secretary and assistant commissioners, and to summon persons before them to give evidence

15-18 The commissioners to make general rules for poor-law administration, which are to be submitted to the Secretary of State and laid before parliament; when ratified, copies to be sent to all interested local authorities, who are to publicise them

19 Ensures the religious freedom of paupers

20 All orders of the assistant commissioners must be ratified by the commissioners

21-25 Give certain powers to the commissioners for attending local board or vestry meetings, and for ordering, with consent of local authorities, the hiring, building or enlarging of workhouses

26 The commissioners may order the union of groups of parishes as they think fit, but each parish is to remain responsible for its own poor

27 Justices may order out-relief for the aged and impotent poor

28-30 The commissioners to assess union expenses, and returns to be made to parliament

31 Repeals such parts of 22 Geo. III, c. 83, and 56 Geo. III, c. 129, as are no longer applicable

32 Gives commissioners powers to dissolve or alter unions, and to make such rules as are necessary to their altered state, provided that the rights of single parishes are maintained

33-36 United parishes may be regarded as one for the purposes of rating and settlement

37 No union to be formed under the provision of Gilbert's Act without the consent of the commissioners

38-41 Rules for the election of guardians

42-51 Commissioners to make rules for the government of workhouses and the purchasing of supplies, and to direct the appointment of various paid union officers

52-54 Deal with the curtailing of out-relief, and repeal the power of the magistrates and overseers to give relief except in cases of urgent necessity

55 Orders the keeping of records by overseers and workhouse masters

56-62 Deal with out-relief, relief to militia men's families, apprenticeship and emigration

63 Authorises unions to apply to the commissioners for Exchequer Bills for loans for the purposes of the Act

64-68 Revise the law of settlement

69-76 Deal with bastardy and the liability of putative fathers

77 Forbids any person employed in any way in the administration of the Poor Laws to benefit from any trade transactions involved in the providing of relief

78-84 Deal with removal

85 Gives the commissioners power to call for, and publish, the accounts of parish charity trusts, etc

86-88 Deal with freedom from stamp duty and postage of official documents

89 Disallows all payments relating to poor-relief contrary to the terms of the Act

90 Deals with summonses under the Act

91-94 The introduction of spirituous liquors into the workhouse is forbidden. Penalties are given for the workhouse master who infringes this rule and who ill-treats the paupers or otherwise misbehaves. These clauses to be published in each workhouse

95-97 Deal with penalties which officers disobeying the orders of the guardians or otherwise misbehaving may incur. Illegal orders may be disregarded

98-104 The application of penalties for contravening the statute or the regulations of the commissioners, and appeals against alleged wrongful conviction

105-108 Provide that orders, rules and regulations may be removed by a writ of certiorari in the King's Bench

109 Defines terms used in the Act

CHANGES IN THE CENTRAL ADMINISTRATION

After the passing of the Act, the exertions of the assistant commissioners led to the quick formation of unions in many parts of the country. The commissioners made their will known by a flood of orders, rules and regulations, workhouses were built and extended and the old parish poorhouses closed

The form of central administration came under fire very soon. The Commission of three and their secretary became most unpopular; mainly because of the arbitrary jurisdiction allowed them by the 1834 Act, and they were replaced (under the Poor Law Board Act of 1847 (10 & 11 Vic., c. 109) by a Board consisting of the Lord President of the Council, the Lord Privy Seal, the Home Secretary and the Chancellor of the Exchequer. A president, with a casting vote, was to be nominated by the Queen, and two secretaries appointed, one of whom, with the President, was to be responsible to Parliament. This board acted as the central authority for the poor law until the Local Government Act of 1871 (34 & 35 Vic., c. 70) when it gave way to the Local Government Board, which in its turn was replaced by the Ministry of Health under the Act 9 & 10 Geo. V, c. 21 of 1919

The unions were abolished by the Local Government Act of 1929, and the guardians' functions taken over by Public Assistance Committees with guardians' or relief sub-committees set up by County and Borough Councils under the provisions of the Act. The Public Assistance Committees were replaced in 1948 by the National Assistance Board and the County and Borough Council Welfare and Children's Committees

DUTIES AND POWERS OF THE GUARDIANS

The duties of the guardians were set out in an order of the Poor Law Commissioners sent to each union on its formation. Briefly summarised, they were as follows

1. To supervise all relief to the poor, the building, hiring, and providing of a workhouse for the maintenance of paupers and the regulation of its management. These duties were to be exclusive to the guardians, subject to the powers of the commissioners and excepting the powers granted to justices of the peace and the overseers of the poor

2. To appoint a clerk, treasurer, relieving officer and medical officer

3. To purchase supplies for use in the workhouse and for the relief of the outdoor poor

4. To hear and determine all applications for relief, which they could grant either absolutely or on loan

5. To appoint an auditor to allow or disallow their accounts

In addition to the care of the poor, the Boards of Guardians were from time to time made responsible for other administrative duties. The assessment and valuation of rateable property was transferred to union assessment committees by 25 & 26 Vic., c. 103 (1862) and these committees in their turn were superseded by the county councils under the Rating and Valuation Act of 1925. Guardians (or borough councils) were required to appoint school attendance committees to enforce elementary schooling under 39 & 40 Vic., c. 79 (1876) where there was no school board to perform this office; these functions were taken over by the county authority under the Elementary Education Act of 1902

Unions were also found to be convenient units for the registration of births, marriages and deaths (until 1929), for providing vaccination facilities (until 1929) and for sanitary purposes (until 1894)

DUTIES OF THE CLERK TO THE GUARDIANS

1. To take the minutes of the guardians' meetings

2. To keep the account books, minute books and such other memoranda as the guardians or Poor Law Commissioners might require

3. To conduct the official correspondence of the guardians and to keep all such correspondence with all other letters and documents belonging to the union

4. To give due notice of the meetings of the guardians

The clerk to the guardians was normally a solicitor

DUTIES OF THE TREASURER TO THE GUARDIANS

1. To receive all money tendered to him on behalf of the guardians

2. To pay all cheques drawn upon him by the guardians

3. To keep an account of all money received and paid by him

4. To report to the commissioners (or their successors) whenever there were no funds belonging to the union in his hands

The treasurer was usually a member of a firm of bankers

DUTIES OF THE RELIEVING OFFICER

1. To attend the weekly meetings of the guardians and any other meetings to which he might be summoned

2. To enquire into all applications for relief and report on their merits to the guardians at their weekly meeting

3. To give such temporary relief in cases of urgent necessity as each case, whether that of a person resident within the boundaries of the union or not, might require, either by sheltering the pauper in the workhouse or by giving out-relief in kind, not in money

As a rule, the giving of out relief was not encouraged, but in certain cases, such as the illness or death of one member of a family, the wife and family of a militia-man, a widow with dependent children or a prisoner in gaol or in any other place of custody, relief was given out of the workhouse. Normally, any person or family in need of help was taken into the workhouse

4. To notify the medical officer of the illness of, or injury to, any pauper resident in the district for which he is appointed, and in the mean time to grant any relief needful; on the certificate of the medical officer, the relieving officer could grant any extras which the doctor should prescribe

5. To keep a full account of any money received or disbursed by him for the poor of each parish and of all articles received and dispensed by him as out-relief, to balance each account weekly and to present it to the guardians for their inspection

6. To report weekly to the guardians at their meeting all cases of emergency relief granted by parish officials

7. To keep, and present weekly to the guardians, a detailed nominal list of out-relief granted

8. To make out quarterly and exhibit in each parish, a list of persons relieved there

During the years following 1834 the relieving officer acquired other duties; he had certain statutory functions under the Lunacy Acts and was often appointed collector to the guardians, registrar of births and deaths, vaccination officer, school attendance officer and inspector under the Infant Life Protection Acts

DUTIES OF CHURCHWARDENS AND OVERSEERS OF THE POOR

1. To make, assess (until the Act of 1862) and collect the poor rate in their separate parishes and to enter the same in an official rate book; to pay over such sums as were required of them by the guardians for the maintenance of their own poor and for general union expenses

2. To give temporary relief (but not in money) in cases of urgent necessity to poor persons whether settled or not in their parishes, but to report this immediately in writing to the relieving officer

3. To submit any orders of the justices for out-relief to the relieving officer, so that he may lay them before the guardians at their next meeting

4. To carry out all lawful instructions of the guardians or of the relieving officer acting for them

DUTIES OF THE MEDICAL OFFICER

1. To enter into contract with the guardians to attend upon all sick paupers belonging to and resident within the union whether in the workhouse or not, and to provide any necessary medicines; also to treat at a reasonable charge per head, any other non-settled paupers for whom the guardians might be temporarily responsible

2. To give a medical certificate relating to the illness of any pauper, when required by the guardians, the relieving officer or the pauper himself

3. To make a return of cases treated to the guardians at each of their weekly meetings

The 1834 Act left guardians free to contract with one or more medical officers for duties within the union as they thought fit, but an order of 12 March 1842 stipulated that no medical officer should be appointed to serve a district of more than fifteen thousand acres or more than fifteen thousand population. This same order gives the qualifications necessary in, and fees payable to, a medical officer

DUTIES OF THE COLLECTOR

This office was created under an order of the Poor Law Board dated 7 October 1865. The collector's main duties were to collect, under the directions of the guardians, all sums of money due to them which were not payable to the treasurer. Usually these sums were those due to the guardians in repayment for relief granted; the payment could come from two sources. The pauper himself might be able to contribute as he might possess some income, but not enough to support him completely outside the workhouse, or might come into possession of a capital sum while receiving out-relief from which a limited amount could be claimed. The other source of contributions was from the relatives of a pauper. The amount of these contributions was always governed by the financial circumstances of the relatives and the extent to which the pauper was chargeable

Usually contributions were made by voluntary agreement, but sometimes legal proceedings were necessary. Any contribution from a pension was obtainable by agreement only, no legal process being permissible; Old Age Pensions (paid under 8 Edw. VII, c. 40, and succeeding Acts) were discontinued when the recipients entered the workhouse unless they were admitted for medical treatment

WORKHOUSE OFFICERS AND THEIR RESPONSIBILITIES

In an Order of the Poor Law Commissioners dated 5 February 1842, and entitled "Workhouse Rules", detailed regulations were given for the administration of the workhouse and the conduct of its officials (see WG/7/27/2, f. 31)

The master and matron were responsible for the organisation and administration of the workhouse, and the food, clothing, and occupations of the inmates. They were obliged to summon the medical officer and the chaplain whenever their services were required, and to report regularly to the House Committee and to the Board of Guardians. The matron was also responsible for nursing the sick in the workhouse, and for all the laundry of the establishment

The chaplain was to read prayers and preach a sermon to the paupers every Sunday and Holy Day, to visit the sick, to catechize and examine the children once a month at least, and to report on the moral and religious state of the imnates of the workhouse to the Board of Guardians. Those poor people who were not members of the Church of England were entitled to see a minister of religion of their own denomination

The schoolmaster and schoolmistress were responsible for the education and moral welfare of the pauper children, and were required to "assist the master and matron respectively in maintaining due subordination in the workhouse"

The workhouse medical officer made regular visits and reported on treatment given and needful for sick paupers; the supervising of the drainage, ventilation and heating of the house were also his responsibility, and he could advise the guardians on general matters affecting the health and physical welfare of inmates

The workhouse porter kept an account of all persons entering or leaving the workhouse and all goods delivered and sent out, and acted as assistant to the master and matron in most matters of order and security

Strict rules were drawn up by the commissioners for the administration of union workhouses, and every hour of the paupers' day was organised for work, meals and recreation; punishments were specified for those who did not conform. There were seven classes of inmates divided according to age and sex, and ideally there was no communication between any of the classes except, at specified times, for mothers with children under seven. A filling but not particularly nourishing diet which varied slightly from union to union was prescribed for the paupers, but the medical officer could order extras for anyone whom he thought in need of them. The work provided for the paupers varied from union to union, but able-bodied males were, during the early years, employed in picking oakum, and grinding bones and wheat by hand. The women undertook sewing and cleaning, and sometimes were given the same tasks as the men

Provision was made for complaints which could be made either to the guardians at their weekly meeting or to the Visiting Committee who came to the workhouse at least once a week, and who had a prescribed list of subjects on which they had to report to the guardians

THE CARE OF CHILDREN

From the very beginning of the new poor law, the central authority had enjoined the separation of children from adult paupers, and though the funds available made thorough schooling for the most part impossible, an attempt was generally made to give the pauper children some kind of education, though the quality of this depended very much on the type of guardians responsible for it

Large unions had their own schools, and others joined together into school districts and shared the expense of one establishment. The passing of the Elementary Education Act in 1870 increased school facilities, and quite often children were sent out to public elementary schools

A report by Mrs. Nassau Senior on poor-law schools, which appeared in 1874, advocated the breaking down of large schools into smaller groups, and the system of "cottage homes" and boarding-out was introduced

When schooling was ended, care was taken that the children were sent to good posts, and various philanthropic societies interested themselves in caring for the young workers. Out-relief was given to widows with children, but quite often this was very little, and children of large families whose mothers were working were in many cases, hopelessly inadequately clothed, fed and cared for. The Royal Commission of 1909 stressed the necessity for supervision of all children in receipt of out-relief

THE CARE OF THE SICK POOR

In the early days of the unions, sick poor were usually cared for in the same building as other classes of pauper; qualified nurses were rare, and more often than not female paupers were in charge of the wards. When paid nurses were employed, they were usually untrained and the General Consolidated Order of 1847 required only that the paid nurse should be able to read written instructions upon medicines. By 1878, the Local Government Board were able to report that the employment of pauper nurses had been entirely superseded; as far as possible properly qualified nurses supervised the sick wards, and girls were taken on as probationers for training

By the time of the report of the Royal Commission on the Poor Laws in 1909 the majority of unions had their own separate infirmaries for the sick, either independently or in conjunction with other neighbouring authorities. This was a great improvement, as many poor and respectable people were unwilling to go to the workhouse sick wards for treatment, even when suffering from illnesses which could not be treated properly at home

THE ROYAL COMMISSION OF 1906-1909

The Report of this commission is most illuminating in showing the development of the care of the poor during the first seventy years of the unions' existence

Its chief recommendations were the formation of public assistance authorities on a county basis, to act as a central control and liaison with the Local Government Board, and the creation of public assistance committees in place of unions; the abolition of general workhouses, so that different classes of poor might be dealt with independently according to their individual needs, special attention being given to children and the aged, and qualified staff being employed; that when out-relief was given, the recipients should be closely supervised so that any cases of neglect or distress could be quickly dealt with; that the problem of unemployment be simplified by the setting up of Labour Exchanges, and the introduction of unemployment insurance

The Labour Exchange Act (9 Ed. VII, c. 7) followed soon after the publication of the Report, and the National Insurance Act (1 & 2 Geo. V, c. 55) in 1911, but the dissolution of the unions themselves had to wait for the Local Government Act of 1929

THE LOCAL GOVERNMENT ACT OF 1929

The government's proposals for reform of local government as a whole were first published in 1926. The functions of the Boards of Guardians overlapped those of the various specialised bodies formed under late nineteenth century and early twentieth century legislation, and the relevant clauses of the 1929 Act were aimed, among other things, at regularising the position

Permissive clauses in the Local Government Act allowed for the complete absorption of poor-law duties in public health, welfare, and education departments of County authorities, but this was not effectually achieved until the passing of the relevant Acts of the 1940s

In 1930 the newly formed Public Assistance committees of County Councils, aided by Guardians' committees (which generally covered larger areas than those of the Boards of Guardians), took over the functions of the unions, and the process of replacing poor relief by social welfare services was intensified. Children's, old people's and cripples' homes, infirmaries and casual wards were by now treated as separate establishments, although their administration was co-ordinated under the appropriate Local Authority

THE POOR LAW IN SUSSEX

There is a wealth of material to illustrate the working of the old Poor Law among the parish records of Sussex

In West Sussex there were several incorporations for poor-law purposes before 1834, but none in East Sussex, though Brighton, like Chichester, was administered as a single parish under a local Act. Petworth and Arundel were incorporated as single parishes under Gilbert's Act, and unions of rural parishes were centred on Easebourne, East Preston, Sutton, Thakeham, Westhampnett and Yapton

The records surviving for the Gilbert and other pre-1834 unions vary greatly both in form and quantity

Of the individual parishes, Arundel's records are indistinguishable from parochial overseers' documents and nothing has survived for Petworth and Brighton. An article based on the records of the Chichester Incorporation was published in Sussex Archaeological Collections, vol. 79 (1938), pp. 131-167. This article, entitled 'Chichester Workhouse', drew its information from the first two of six court books covering the period 1753-1847, which were in the hands of the Chichester Guardians, were later, according to a footnote, in the care of Chichester City Council, and are now WG/5/1a/1-6

For Easebourne United Parishes only accounts and a few odd papers survive; Thakeham Incorporation has a minute and account book covering the first few years of the Union only. East Preston Incorporation which was not dissolved until 1869, is slightly better documented, but has no minutes before 1855

The most extensive series of Gilbert Union records surviving is that for Sutton; there are minutes, accounts, correspondence and even some early 'case papers' in the form of applications for relief. These records were in the possession of the successors of the last clerk of the Union until March 1959 when they were deposited in the West Sussex Record Office

The other Gilbert Unions, Westhampnett (consisting of Barnham, Binderton, Boxgrove, East Dean, Eartham, Graffham, East and Mid Lavant, Singleton, West Stoke and Westhampnett parishes) and Yapton (Felpham, Walberton and Yapton) have, as far as is known, left no surviving records

The Report of the Commission of 1834 makes several references to the state of poor relief in Sussex. Arundel had a system of relief in aid of wages which was agreed in open vestry in 1830 and ratified by the magistrates, and another such system was evidently in force at Laughton. At Uckfield the poor had to work only part of the day for their parish pay, while at Eastbourne the weekly sum paid to the able-bodied parish pauper was more than could be earned by the independent labourer; at Rotherfield the pay was the same, and the work less arduous. Burwash put its surplus labourers up for auction, and Hastings fishermen refused to take their boats out in bad weather as it was more profitable to stay at home. Further details of the misapplication of the old Poor Law are to be found in the First Annual Report of the Poor Law Commissioners, 1835

Sussex was one of the first counties to be completely divided into unions, eighteen being formed before the end of 1835. Chichester and Brighton continued to be administered under their respective Local Acts, and Sutton and East Preston Incorporations were to survive, albeit against much opposition, for another thirty-five years

The model union of the county was that centred on Westhampnett, where the chairman of the guardians, and incidentally, the owner of the workhouse, was the 5th Duke of Richmond, who had been closely involved in the passing of the Poor Law Amendment Act. The first Report of the Poor Law Commissioners gives a glowing account of its success, though the minutes of the guardians show that there was a considerable amount of disturbance during the first few months of the Union's activities. Unfortunately we have no first hand account of the feelings of the average labourer. The occupations provided for the able-bodied inmates of Westhampnett workhouse were picking oakum and grinding bones and wheat in hand-mills

The new law considerably reduced expenditure on poor relief. According to the second annual Report of the Commissioners, the amount spent in Sussex went down from £262,739 in the year ended March, 1835, to £205,335 in the year ended March, 1836. Whether human suffering went up correspondingly is a question which can be partially answered from the records. From our viewpoint today the union workhouses seem to have been grim places, but our standard of living is now infinitely higher, and methods of dealing with the poor and unfortunate have developed considerably. The dread of the workhouse is now a thing of the past

Crabbe, in his poem "The Village", published in 1783, gives a picture of a parish workhouse which is infinitely more horrifying than anything which the rural areas of Sussex produced under the rule of the guardians, and although the wretched inmates of the workhouse were deprived of their personal liberty and separated from their families, they did at least have a roof over their heads, and were kept from starvation in cases of real need

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