The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1870-12-10 00:00:00

oa aii Jirct%ictus.

THE BOARDING-OUT OF PAUPER

cHILDEEN.

The Poor-Law Board have issued a code of
Articles for the guidance of Boards of Guard-
ians and others, in the various parishes, and
through the courtesy of Mr. W. H. King, we
are enabled to publish the same, in iwtenso
We, the Poor Law Board, in pursuance of the
authorities vested in us by an Act passed in the
fifth year of the reign of His late Majesty, King
William the Fourth, intituled " An Act for the
Amendment and better Administration of the
Laws relating to the Poor in England and
Wales,- and by all Acts amending the same, do
hereby order, direct, and declare, with respect to
each and every of the Unions and Parishes
named in the Schedules (C.) and (D.) hereunto
annexed, as follows:

•
ARTICLE I.—Notwithstanding any provisions
contained in any orders issued by the Poor Law
Commissioners or the Poor Law Board relating
to the administration of relief to paupers not i
residing within the union or parish n which
they are settled, the Guardians of any Union
or Parish named in the Schedules W.) and (D.)
hereunto annexed may board out Pauper Chil-
dren from such Union or Parish in homes bey-
ond the limits of such Union or Parish: provided
that they have entered into arrangements, ap-
proved of by the Poor Law Board, with two or
more persons, hereinafter called the Boarding.
out Committee, for the purpose of finding and
superintending such homes.
ARTICLE 11.—No such arrangements shall be
made with any such Boarding-out Committee
unless each member of the Committee have
signed an undertaking, truly and faithfully to
observe all regulations in this order prescribed,
or which may from time to time be prescribed
by the Poor Law Board, with respect to the
boarding-out of pauper children, arid unless the
Committee have obtained the written authority
of the Peer Law Board to make such arrange-
ments.

ARTICLE lll.—Any person deriving any pecu-
niary or other personal profit from the boarding
out of any child shall be thereby disqualified
from becoming or continuing to be a member of
any such Committee.

AuIcLJ IV.—The Guardians of any Union
or Palish from which any child is sent to be
boarded out in any home so found, may at any
time withdraw such child from the said home,
notice of their intention to do so being given at
least one week beforehand to the Boarding•out
Committee.

ARTICLE V.—The regulatiuns to be observed
by the Guardians with respect to the boarding.
out of pauper children shall be as follows :

No. I.—No child shall be SO boarded out unless suet
child is an orphan, or being illegitimate, deserted by the
mother, or being ligitimate, deserted by both parents, ur
deserted by one plaint, the other parent being dead or
under sentence of penal servitude, or suffering perma-
nently from mental disease, or out of Englund.
No. 2.—No child shall be first boarded out at an earlier
age than two, or at a later age than ten years.
N. 3.—No child shall be boarded out without a certi-
ficate, signed by the Medical Officer of the Union or
Parish from which it is sent, slating the particulais of its
health, such certificate to be forwarded by the Uusedians
to the Boarding-out Committee.

No 4.—Net oore than two children, save only in the
case of brothers and sisters, shall be boarded out in the
same home at the same time, and in to case shiell the
number of chilelien boarded out in the some house ex-
ceed four.

No. s.—ln no ease shall a child be boarded Out with
foster-parents of a different religious perauit•ion from
that to which the child belongs.
No. el.—Before receiving any child to be boarded out
with thew, the foster-parent shall sign an undertaking in
duplicate, which shall, in addition to any other matter
which may be agreed upon, contain an engagement on
the part of the forter-parents, that, in consideration of
their receiving a certain slim per w eek, they will bring
up the child as one of their own children, and provide it
with proper food, lodging, and washing, and endeavour
to train it in habits of truthfulness, obedience, personal
cleanliness, and industry, as well as in suitable domestic
and out-door work; that they will take care that the child
shall attend duly at church or chapel, according to the
religion to which the child belongs,and shall, while
boarded-out between the ages of four and twelve years,
attend a school, unless prevented by sickness or other
urgent cause, during all the usual hours for instruction
thereat ; that they will provide for the proper repair and
renewal of the child's clothing, where an allowance is
made by the Guardians for that purpose ; and that in
case of the child's illness, they will report it to the
Guardians, and also lathe Boarding-out Committee; and
that they will at all times permit the child to be visited
by any member of the Boarding-ou Committee, and by
any person npecially appointed for that purpose by the
Guardians or by the Pour Law Board.
The Guardians shall cause ono copy of this undertak-
ing.to be forwarded to the Poor Law Board.
_

-
7.—On the dslivery of the child to the foster-
parents or foster-parent, an acknowledgment shall be
given in the form set oat in Schedule (A.) hereto an-
nexed, or to the like effect.

B.—ln ZIO ease ohell the weekly sum to be paid by
the linardians to the foeter.parents for the maintenance
of a child, inclusive of lodging, bat exclusive of clothing,
school-pence, and fees for medical attendance, exceed
tour shillings.

No. 9 —go child shall be boarded out in a home dis-
taut more than a mile cod a half from a School, the
Schoolmaster of which is willing to undertake to send to
the GuarMans a written repoit upon the child, in the
Form coutainel in the Schedule (8.) hereto annexed, at
least once a quarter.
No. 10.—The Guardians may allow an extra school-fee,
not exceeding one penny per week, to be paid to the
Schoo.master of the School at which such bearded-out
child attends, the same to be a remuneration to hint for
drawing up and sendbg the tioarterly Report upon such
hoarded-out child prescribed in the Regulation last pre.

No 7 11.—No child shall be herded out in any home
which is distant more than live miles by the nearest road
of access from the residence of some member of the
Committee.

ARTICLE Vl.—Every boarded-out child shall
be visited not less often than once in every six
weeks at the home of the foster-parents by a
member of the Committee, and the visitor shall
thereupon make a report in writing to the Com-
mittee, stating the apparent bodily condition and
the behaviour of such child, and all reasonable
complaints made by or concerning the child,
against or by the foster-parents.
These reports shall be forwarded by the Com-
mittee to the Guardians not less often than
quarterly.

- And if in the case of any boarded-out child,
no such report shall be received by the Guar-
dians for the space of four consecutive months,
the Guardians shall either provide for the visit-
ing of such child at the home of its foster par
eats by an officer oT the Guardians at intervals
of six weeks, or shall withdraw the child from
the home with all reasonable expedition.
Alarms. VII.—If the Poor Law Board shall
withdraw from any Boarding-out Committee the
authority required by Article 11., the Guardians
who have made arrangements for the boarding-
out of pauper children with the said Committee
shall, on receiving notice of such withdrawal,
take back with all reasonable expedition all chil-
dren boarded out in homes found by such Corn.
inittee ; nevertheless, it shall be lawful for the