Year 5 in the Workhouse

On Monday Year 5 visited Southwell Workhouse as part of their Victorians topic.

On arrival we were transported back to the 19th Century and children wore the clothes of pauper inmates. They were registered by the formidable Matron and took part in a lesson given by Miss Huff. Left-handed pupils were given short shrift by the strict schoolmistress! After boys and girls had been segregated a pauper inmate took the pupils on a tour of the workhouse and described what living conditions were like.

In the afternoon, the children had the chance to interview the Matron and a pauper inmate and tried to come to a conclusion as to whether the inmates were treated badly or not. The majority of pupils eventually concluded that though life in this country workhouse was harsh, the inmates probably had better conditions inside than if they had faced poverty in the outside world.