Poor Relief - Law Commission

(e) Churchwardens and Overseers of the Poor required to call vestry
meetings; penalty for failure to do so (Section 9)
(f) Oath for Directors; procedure for accepting the position of Director; no
Director to serve within a 5 year period after ceasing to hold office;
Directors to appoint a treasurer, clerk and other officers for running the
house of industry, 67 these officers to be paid an allowance for their
troubles; the Directors to take security from the appointed officers for the
faithful execution of their office (Sections 10 –14)
(g) Provision for weekly meetings and special assemblies of the Directors;
Directors empowered to purchase land or buildings within the parish of
Tewkesbury for the purposes of this Act; conveyancing procedures;
houses and lands purchased to be exempt from window duty; tenants to
leave land sold to the Guardians with 6 months’ notice (Sections 15 –19)
(h) Directors to furnish the building with the goods necessary for receiving
and setting the poor to work; Directors vested with the care and
management of the poor of Tewkesbury and empowered to set the poor
to work and to despatch the idle poor to the house of industry; power to
apprehend vagrants and punish the misbehaving poor in the workhouse;
poor children to be maintained in the workhouse until the age of 14 and
may be apprenticed out for seven years or until the age of 21 (for a boy)
or until the age of 21 or marriage (for a girl); poor children may be
apprenticed to the Governor of the house of industry; poor children may
be farmed out (Sections 20 - 24)
(i) Authority for the Directors to borrow money, not exceeding £6000, to be
repaid out of the parish rates; form of mortgage and mortgage transfer
(Sections 25 – 26)
(j) Money arising under the poor rates shall be collected by the Overseers of
the Poor and paid to the Treasurer for the management of the Directors;
punishment of Overseers for failing to collect the rates; rates equal to the
sum needed for the relief of the poor and the interest on the money
borrowed under this Act; £100 to be paid off the principal sum borrowed
annually; mode of paying off mortgages; provision for Directors to collect
the rates if the Overseers fail to do so (Sections 27 – 32)
67 Or workhouse.
72