workhouse test

{{Short description|Non-implemented restriction on welfare (U.K.)}}

{{for|the Act of Parliament concerning the workhouse test|Workhouse Test Act 1723}}

{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2019}}

{{More citations needed|date=September 2011}}

The workhouse test was a condition of the Poor Law Amendment Act 1834. It stated that anyone who wanted to get poor relief must enter a workhouse. The condition was never implemented in Britain and outdoor relief continued to be given.{{cite book|last1=Drudy|first1=P. J.|title=Ireland and Britain Since 1922|date=1986|publisher=CUP Archive|isbn=9780521332095|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=8qw8AAAAIAAJ&dq=Workhouse+test+1834&pg=PA65|access-date=11 December 2017|language=en}} The intended purpose was to make the workhouses as undesirable as possible so that people would look for work elsewhere before attempting to receive indoor relief.{{Cite web|title=The Victorian Workhouse|url=https://www.historic-uk.com/HistoryUK/HistoryofBritain/Victorian-Workhouse/|access-date=2021-06-15|website=Historic UK|language=en-GB}} The "test" itself was, in essence, were the people who wanted relief desperate enough to enter the workhouse, despite the conditions.