At Quarry Bank Mill, Year 5  had the chance to step back in time and experience life as it was during the Victorian era. The mill, built in 1784, played a huge role in Britain's Industrial Revolution, and we explored both the mill itself and the conditions people worked in.

We learned about the tough jobs children and adults had to do in the mill. Some of us tried working the machines like a “scavenger,” crawling under the spinning machines to collect cotton, a task often done by children. Others took on the role of emptying the chamber pots and making the beds. It was intense and gave us a glimpse into the dangerous working conditions faced by Victorian workers.

In the Apprentice House, we discovered how the child workers lived. Their daily routines were harsh – long hours, little food, and strict discipline. But the visit also taught us about the resilience and courage of the workers who lived through it.

This experience helped us understand not just the jobs, but the hard, demanding life that people endured during the Victorian period, making us grateful for the advances in workers' rights today!