Industrial Schools

[peter.higginbotham]

Unfortunately I missed the Griff Rhyss Jones episode but I understand that "Industrial Schools" were described as "brutal institutions.. designed chiefly for children who were truants, or from families where there was a suggestion of criminal activity - or who came from unfit parents." (BBC web site)
If so, this is seriously misleading. Industrial Schools were originally set up for the children of workhouse inmates, or orphans who had been taken into care by the workhouse authorities. Kirkdale, where GRJs forebears went, was an example of such an establishment. After the Industrial Schools Act of 1857 a rather different type of institution, which - confusingly was also called a ('certified') industrial school - came into existence which did cater for children found wandering the streets or who were considered in danger of becoming criminals. This new type of industrial school was not run by workhouse authorities but by private, charitable or religious bodies. The existing poor-law schools such as Kirkdale continued in their former role catering for pauper children.
As I say, I did not see the episode in question, but it should be made very clear to GRJ that his forebears may have been poor but they were not 'bad' in the way that the programme may have implied.
Peter Higginbotham
[link=http://www.workhouses.org.uk/]www.workhouses.org.uk[/link]