Timetravelling children from Belmont grosvenor go back to the workhouse!

30th March 2010

Pupils at Belmont Grosvenor School on the outskirts of Harrogate have turned the clocks back more than 100 years to discover what life was like for children living in Victorian Britain.

Year 6 students at the independent prep school, based at Swarcliffe Hall, Birstwith, have been collecting and researching information from a range of sources to understand the changes that took place to children’s lives in Victorian times. 

They have compared the lives of the rich and the poor, played Victorian games at break times and looked at the different ways children were taught in school.

The children even researched Victorian inventions and made traditional Victorian mobiles for a classroom display.

And they enjoyed a visit to the Ripon Workhouse Museum, Courthouse and Prison – in full Victorian costume.

Assistant Headteacher Emma Stretch said: “Our trip to the Ripon Workhouse Museum, Courthouse and Prison has fuelled the children’s imaginations even further. 

“They discovered what life was like for a child in a Victorian Workhouse, gained an insight into the work of and the history of the Police and Prison Service and finally took part in a Courthouse Trial.  The children thoroughly enjoyed getting into character as did their teacher!”