The Workhouse, Southwell

The Workhouse in Southwell is the best-preserved workhouse in England, built in 1824 to the design of the Reverend John T. Becher as a model for the national system established by the Poor Law Amendment Act of 1834. The building's austere rooms, exercise yards and segregated quarters for men, women and children tell the harsh story of poverty and welfare in 19th-century England. The adjacent infirmary, restored by the National Trust, reveals how the workhouse also served as a rudimentary hospital. The Workhouse offers a powerful and sobering insight into social history that shaped the modern welfare state.