The Pamphlet Collection of Sir Robert Stout: Volume 42

Factory Act, 1844

Factory Act, 1844.

How children may be employed on three alternato days of thè week.

Sec. 31. And be it enacted, that in any factory in which the labour of young persons is restricted to ten hours in any one day it shall be lawful to employ any child ten hours in any one day on three alternate days of every week, provided that such child shall not be employed in any manner in the same or in any other factory on two successive days, nor after half past four of the clock in the afternoon of any Saturday: Provided always, that the parent or person having direct benefit from the wages of any child so employed shall cause such child to attend some school for at least five hours between the hours of eight of the clock in the morning and six of the clock in the afternoon of the same day on each week day preceding each day of employment in the factory, unless such preceding day shall be a Saturday, when no school attendance of such child shall be required: Provided also, that on Monday in every week after that in which such child began to work in the factory, or any other day appointed for that purpose by the inspector of the district, the occupier of the factory shall obtain a certificate from a schoolmaster, according to the form and directions given in the schedule (A.) to this Act annexed, that such child has attended school as required by this Act; but it shall not be lawful to employ any child in a factory more than seven hours in any one day, until the owner of the factory shall have sent a notice in writing to the inspector of the district of his intention to restrict the hours of labour of young persons in the factory to ten hours a day, and to employ children ten hours a day; and if such occupier of a factory shall at any time cease so to employ children ten hours a day he shall not again employ any child in his factory more than seven hours in any one day until he shall have sent a further notice to the inspector in the manner hereinbefore provided.

Additional regulations for the attendance of children at school

38. And be it enacted, that, save as herein otherwise provided, the parent or person having any direct benefit from the wages of any child employed in a factory shall cause such child to attend some school on the day after the first employment of such child, and thenceforth on each working day of every week during any part of which the said child shall continue in such employment; so that on every such day, except in the cases hereinafter provided, such child shall attend

school during at least three hours after the hour of eight of the clock in the morning and before the hour of six of the clock in the evening: Provided always, that any child attending school after one of the clock in the afternoon shall not be required to remain in school more than two hours and a half on any one day between the first day of November and the last day of February, and no child shall be required to attend school on any Saturday, and the non-attendance of every such child shall be excused on every day on which such child shall be certified by the schoolmaster to have been prevented by sickness or other unavoidable cause from attending the school, and during any holiday or half holiday authorised by this Act, or by consent in writing of the inspector of the district in which the factory is situated, or, where the schoolroom is situated within the outer boundary of the factory at which such child is employed, on every day on which the school shall be closed in consequence of the said factory ceasing to be at work during the whole day.
39. And be it enacted, that no schoolmaster's tickets or

Occupier of factory to obtain school certificate,

vouchers shall be required or valid other than is hereinafter provided, and that the occupier of every factory in which a child is employed shall on Monday in every week after the first week in which such child began to work in the factory, or on any other day appointed for that purpose by an inspector, obtain a certificate from a schoolmaster, according to the form and directions given in the schedule (A.) to this Act annexed, that such child has attended school as required by this Act during the foregone week; and such occupier shall keep such certificate for six months after the date thereof, and shall produce the same to any inspector or sub-inspector when required during such period, and shall, when required by the inspector for the district, pay

and to pay school fees.

to the schoolmaster of such child, or to such other person as the said inspector may direct, towards the expenses of educating such child, such sum as the inspector may require, not exceeding twopence per week, and shall be entitled to deduct from the wages payable to such child any such sum as he shall have been required to pay for such expenses, not exceeding the rate of one twelth part of the weekly wages of such child: Provided

Inspector may by notice annul the certificate of any school-master found un-fit.

always, that if an inspector, on his personal examination, or on the report of a sub-inspector, shall be of opinion that any schoolmaster who grants certificates of the school attendance of children employed in a factory is unfit to instruct children, by reason of his incapacity to teach them to read and write, from his gross ignorance, or from his not having the books and materials necessary to teach them reading and writing,

or because of his immoral conduct, or of his continued neglect to fill up and sign the certificates of school attendance required by this Act, the inspector of the district may annul any certificate granted by such disqualified schoolmaster, by a notice in writing addressed to the occupier of the factory in which the children named in the certificate are employed, or his principal agent, setting forth the grounds on which he deems such schoolmaster to be unfit; and after the date of such notice no certificate of school attendance granted by such schoolmaster shall be valid for the purposes of this Act, unless with the consent in writing of the inspector of the district; but no inspector shall annul any such certificate unless in the aforesaid notice he shall name some other school situated within two miles of the factory where the children named

Appeal,

in the certificate are employed: Provided also, that any schoolmaster whose certificate shall have been annulled, or the occupier of the factory in which the children named in the said certificate are employed on behalf of the schoolmaster, may appeal to the Secretary of State against such decisions of the Inspector, and the Secretary of State may, if he think fit, rescind such decision: Provided also, that every inspector shall in his annual report to the Secretary of State for the Home Department state the instances (if any) in which he shall have had occasion to annul any such certificate, together with the reasons which he has in each case assigned for doing so.