Key Stage 4 History
This pack includes information about:
 The growth of unemployment, and the
government response, and the experience of
the unemployed.
Key Stage Four History
Teachers’ Notes
Aims and objectives:
-Understand the impact of depression 1931-39.
-Become confident in using primary sources.
-Reflect on how unemployment affected individuals and politics.
The Mass Observation Archive has a wealth of material, dating from 1937 to present day. It contains
‘everyday’ responses to 20th-century events, such as the Great Depression and The Second World
War, and documents social, cultural and technological changes in post-war Britain.
The growth of unemployment, and the government response, and the experience of
the unemployed:
SxMOA1/2/36/1/A: Adult Education, 1937.
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Using documents from the Worktown collection, your pupils can explore the impact of the Great
Depression on employment. The Handwritten report from a holiday camp for unemployed men
describes personal experiences, and recounts a political lecture. The material from the WEA reveals
what educational opportunities were available at the time.
Humphrey Spender’s photographs of Bolton in the late 1930s, portray what life was like in an
industrial northern town: boltonworktown.co.uk/photo-collection/
SxMOA1/2/57: TC57 The Budget, Money Matters & Household Budgeting, 1938-50
SxMOA1/2/75/1/A/12 : chart of unemployment figures from the 1920s, 1930s and 1940s
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By looking at unemployment statistics from the late 1930s, students can begin to understand the
impact of unemployment on living standards.  Can they find unemployment data for today? How
does this compare with the 1930s? What impact does unemployment have on the public and
politics? How reliable is this source material?
SxMOA1/2/36/1/A: Adult Education, 1937
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SxMOA1/2/36/1/A: Adult Education, 1937
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SxMOA1/2/36/1/A: Adult Education, 1937
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SxMOA1/2/36/1/A: Adult Education, 1937
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SxMOA1/2/36/1/A: Adult Education, 1937
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SxMOA1/2/36/1/A: Adult Education, 1937
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SxMOA1/2/36/1/A: Adult Education, 1937
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SxMOA1/2/57: The Budget… 1938-50
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SxMOA1/2/57: The Budget… 1938-50
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SxMOA1/2/57: The Budget… 1938-50
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SxMOA1/2/75/1/A/12 : chart of unemployment figures
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SxMOA1/2/75/1/A/12 : chart of unemployment figures
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