Housemother

Housemother was a job in British children's homes from the 1940s onwards.[1][2] Housemothers were responsible for small groups of children living in children's homes.[3] They lived in the same accommodation as the children, and in the first decades of the role were responsible for children during the night as well as the day.[4][5] They carried out personal care tasks for children, and household chores.[6][7]

The model of residential care managed by housemothers was established following the Curtis Report in 1946; the small group children's homes set up following this report were sometimes called cottage homes.[1][8] From 1947, there were courses to qualify as a housemother in England and Wales, and in Scotland, such as the Certificate in the Residential Care of Children.[9] There were sometimes assistant housemothers too.[1] Following the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974, housemothers were not always required to be on duty at night as well as in the day.[4]

References

  1. ^ a b c Aymer, Cathy (2002). "Women in residential work: dilemmas and ambiguities". In Day, Lesley; Langan, Mary (eds.). Women, Oppression and Social Work: Issues in Anti-Discriminatory Practice. Routledge. p. 187. ISBN 978-1-134-90283-5. Retrieved 16 April 2025.
  2. ^ King, Roy D.; Raynes, Norma V.; Tizard, Jack (27 October 2023). Patterns of Residential Care: Sociological Studies in Institutions for Handicapped Children. Taylor & Francis. p. 55. ISBN 978-1-000-96026-6. Retrieved 16 April 2025.
  3. ^ Smith, Mark (25 February 2009). Rethinking Residential Child Care: Positive Perspectives. Policy Press. p. 9. ISBN 978-1-86134-908-8. Retrieved 16 April 2025.
  4. ^ a b Elliott, Doreen (19 May 2014). "Some Current Issues in Residential Work: Implications for the Social Work Task". In Walton, Ronald G.; Elliott, Dorren (eds.). Residential Care: A Reader in Current Theory and Practice. Elsevier. p. 19. ISBN 978-1-4831-8926-0. Retrieved 16 April 2025.
  5. ^ Kingdom, United States Educational Commission in the United (1956). Some Impressions of Social Services in Great Britain. Alcuin Press. Retrieved 16 April 2025.
  6. ^ Pugh, Elisabeth (1968). Social Work in Child Care. Taylor & Francis. pp. 80–81. ISBN 978-1-000-84599-0. Retrieved 16 April 2025. The child care officer, as she drives into the night, carries with her a cosy image of the housemother feeding, washing, and putting to bed, and some part of her would like the satisfactions that come from these activities
  7. ^ Vincent, Ben (1968). Begone Dull Care: An Informal Guide to the Residential Care of Children. H.M. Stationery Office. p. 42. ISBN 978-0-11-340018-8. Retrieved 16 April 2025.
  8. ^ Department, London County Council Local Government and Statistical (1960). London Statistics. Retrieved 16 April 2025.
  9. ^ Skinner, Angus; Scotland, Social Work Services Inspectorate for (1992). Another Kind of Home: A Review of Residential Child Care. H.M. Stationery Office. p. 114. ISBN 978-0-11-494235-9. Retrieved 16 April 2025.
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