The Charity Organisation Societies were founded in England in 1869 following the 'Goschen Minute'[1] that sought to severely restrict outdoor relief distributed by the Poor Law Guardians along the lines of the Elberfeld system.
There was a strong scientific emphasis as the charity visitors organised their activities and learned principles of practice and techniques of intervention from one another.
[citation needed] Charity Organisation Societies were made up of charitable groups that used scientific philanthropy to help poor, distressed or deviant persons.
For instance, the Charity Organization Society of Denver, Colorado, the forerunner of the modern United Way of America, coordinated the charitable activities of local Jewish, Congregational and Catholic groups.
The exit rates are similar to those in late-20th-century public welfare programs, despite the fact that COS only granted relief only to recipients it deemed worthy and improvable.
[9] In Britain, the Charity Organisation Society led by Helen Bosanquet and Octavia Hill was founded in London in 1869[10] and supported the concept of self-help and limited government intervention to deal with the effects of poverty.
A man of rare natural wit, something of a poet, and the brightest of companions, he threw himself eagerly into the Society's work, and more particularly devoted his time and energy to an attempt to deal with the problems of unemployment.