Voices from the Workhouse tells the real inside story of the workhouse - in the words of those who experienced the institution at first hand, either as inmates or through some other connection with the institution. Using a wide variety of sources - letters, poems, graffiti, autobiography, official r[...]

The word 'workhouse' has a grim resonance even today, conjuring up a vision of the darker side of Victorian Britain. Almost every town had at least one workshouse, and most people dreaded ending up there. Here we examine how workhouses came into being, what life was like for men, women and children [...]