The Workhouse was an institution where local ratepayers supported the destitute, elderly and infirm, vagrants, and the mentally ill. They were located at the remote edges of towns and walled, thereby keeping pauperism and Pauper Inmates (as they were called) away from general view.
Conditions within the Workhouse were grim, with the main objectives being to deter parishioners from applying for help whilst providing subsistence level support at minimum cost. Accommodation was cramped and crowded in communal wards of up to 30. Males and females, young and old were kept totally separate, meaning that families were split on entry.
Food was basic and monotonous with a weekly diet comprising a small amount of meat plus bread, soup, cheese, milk, and gruel. Quality rather than quantity was the major issue, but it was sufficient to keep the pauper inmates alive. Quiet was enforced in the communal dining room during all meals.
The daily regime was regimented and monotonous, and based around the hours of daylight. In return for their keep the Inmates had to perform basic labouring tasks, including wood chopping, agriculture, laundry, cleaning, and oakum picking. Those not following orders were punished, including being placed on a “restricted diet” (i.e. bread and water). In the worst case offenders were expelled from the Workhouse and left to fend for themselves.
Workhouses did, nevertheless, provide paupers with some valuable support. Basic schooling was given to Inmate children up to age 14 and medical treatment was available (albeit very primitive in the mid nineteenth century). The Workhouse was also where single destitute women were supported while in the final stages of pregnancy and given treatment during birth of their child.