The 1834 Poor Law Amendment Act

Conditions in the workhouse were appalling. Families were separated, the food was plain and frugal but "sufficient".
Any able-bodied men were turned away to work. Inmates had to wear a uniform, and couldn't leave the workhouse without permission. Tobacco and spirits were banned. Their work included stone breaking, oakum picking, bone crushing, or labouring for one of the local industries. It was quite deliberately backbreaking work - essentially the same as that done by prison inmates.
Children, at least, were schooled.

In 1833 Earl Grey, the Prime Minister, set up a Poor Law Commission to examine the working of the poor Law system in Britain. In their report published in 1834, the Commission made several recommendations to Parliament. As a result, the Poor Law Amendment Act was passed.





The act stated that:
no able-bodied person was to receive money or other help from the Poor Law authorities except in a workhouse;
conditions in workhouses were to be made very harsh to discourage people from wanting to receive help;
workhouses were to be built in every parish or, if parishes were too small, in unions of parishes;
ratepayers in each parish or union had to elect a Board of Guardians to supervise the workhouse, to collect the Poor Rate and to send reports to the Central Poor Law Commission;
the three man Central Poor Law Commission would be appointed by the government and would be responsible for supervising the Amendment Act throughout the country.

In 1847 the Commission was replaced by the Poor Law Board, under ministerial control.


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