Boards of guardians were ''
ad hoc
''Ad hoc'' is a List of Latin phrases, Latin phrase meaning literally for this. In English language, English, it typically signifies a solution designed for a specific purpose, problem, or task rather than a Generalization, generalized solution ...
'' authorities that administered
Poor Law in the
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...
from 1835 to 1930.
England and Wales
Boards of guardians were created by the
Poor Law Amendment Act 1834, replacing the parish
overseers of the poor established under the old poor law, following the recommendations of the
Poor Law Commission. Boards administered
workhouses within a defined
poor law union consisting of a group of parishes, either by order of the
Poor Law Commission, or by the common consent of the parishes. Once a union was established it could not be dissolved or merged with a neighbouring union without the consent of its board.
Each board was composed of guardians elected by the owners and ''
bona fide'' occupiers of land liable to pay the
poor rate. Depending on the value of the property held, an elector could cast from one to three votes. Electors could nominate
proxies to cast their vote in their absence. Where property was held by a corporation or company, its governing body could nominate an officer to cast its vote or votes.
Each
civil parish
In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government. Civil parishes can trace their origin to the ancient system of parishes, w ...
in the union was represented by at least one guardian, with those with larger populations or special circumstances having two or more. The exact constitution of each board was determined by the Poor Law Commissioners.
Guardians were subject to annual elections. In addition to the elected guardians, any
justice of the peace residing in a parish of the union was entitled to be an ''
ex officio
An ''ex officio'' member is a member of a body (notably a board, committee, or council) who is part of it by virtue of holding another office. The term '' ex officio'' is Latin, meaning literally 'from the office', and the sense intended is 'by r ...
'' guardian.
It was long unclear whether women were permitted to win election to boards of guardians. In 1875,
Martha Merington was accepted as a candidate for the Kensington Board of Guardians, and was successful. Her election was upheld, although there was much opposition. She was disqualified after winning a further election in 1879 as she was moving house on the election day and so it was uncertain whether she technically met the property ownership requirements at that moment.
[Patricia Hollis, ''Ladies Elect: Women in English Local Government 1865-1914'', p.8] In
Ashton-under-Lyne
Ashton-under-Lyne is a market town in Tameside, Greater Manchester, England. The population was 48,604 at the 2021 census. Historic counties of England, Historically in Lancashire, it is on the north bank of the River Tame, Greater Manchester, ...
,
Bertha Mason was the first woman to be elected to the board and served until she moved to London in 1904.
By the
Public Health Act 1875 (
38 & 39 Vict. c. 55), boards of guardians became
rural sanitary authorities for all areas outside a
municipal borough or town with a
local board.
The
Local Government Act 1894 altered the system; members of newly established
rural district
A rural district was a type of local government area – now superseded – established at the end of the 19th century in England, Wales
Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. I ...
councils became guardians for their areas, with poor law elections being limited to urban areas. At the same time, property qualifications were abolished, plural voting was ended and women were able to become guardians. The term of office of a guardian was increased to three years, with all guardians elected, and no ''ex officio'' or nominated board members. Boards were, however, permitted to
co-opt a chairman, vice-chairman and up to two additional members from outside their own body, provided that they were qualified to be a guardian in a like manner to the elected members.
Boards of guardians were abolished in 1930 by the
Local Government Act 1929, when their powers and responsibilities passed to local and national government bodies, including
public assistance committees.
Douglas Veale, private secretary to
Neville Chamberlain
Arthur Neville Chamberlain (; 18 March 18699 November 1940) was a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from May 1937 to May 1940 and Leader of the Conservative Party (UK), Leader of the Conservative Party from ...
, discussed their abolition, and Chamberlain's work on this, in an interview given to the historian,
Brian Harrison, in February 1969 as part of the Suffrage Interviews project, titled ''Oral evidence on the suffragette and suffragist movements: the Brian Harrison interviews.''
Ireland
A similar system of Poor Law to that in England and Wales was introduced to Ireland in 1838, with boards of guardians elected by rate-payers. The Irish system differed from that in England and Wales, as the civil parish was not used as the basis for the election of guardians. In their place
electoral divisions were formed by the agglomeration of
townland
A townland (; Ulster-Scots: ''toonlann'') is a traditional small land division used in Ireland and in the Western Isles of Scotland, typically covering . The townland system is of medieval Gaelic origin, predating the Norman invasion, and mo ...
s. The ratio of elected to ex officio guardians was to be at least three to one, with an election to be held among the qualified magistrates for ex officio positions if their number exceeded the limit.
Following the partition of the island in 1922 the guardians were abolished in the
Irish Free State
The Irish Free State (6 December 192229 December 1937), also known by its Irish-language, Irish name ( , ), was a State (polity), state established in December 1922 under the Anglo-Irish Treaty of December 1921. The treaty ended the three-ye ...
in 1925, being replaced by County Boards of Health.
Poor Law Unions and their records: The Establishment of the Poor Law System (Ask About Ireland)
/ref> Guardians continued to exist until 1948 in Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland ( ; ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, part of the United Kingdom in the north-east of the island of Ireland. It has been #Descriptions, variously described as a country, province or region. Northern Ireland shares Repub ...
.
Scotland
Under the reformed system introduced in Scotland in 1845, relief of the poor was the responsibility of parochial boards appointed in each civil parish, and boards of guardians were not formed. Adjacent parishes could form "combinations", however, to administer workhouses.
References
Streamlining the Work of the Board
{{DEFAULTSORT:Board Of Guardians
Irish Poor Laws
English Poor Laws
Scottish Poor Laws