SCHOOLgirls went from riches to rags to experience life in Victorian times.

Pupils from Baston Junior School, Baston Road, Hayes, dressed as Victorian ragamuffins to visit The Ragged School Museum in the East End.

The Year 6 pupils who are studying Victorian schoolchildren as part of their curriculum experienced a Victorian lesson.

Headteacher Hilary Antrobus said: "The lesson was very authentic. I think the children were a bit scared, as the mistress was carrying a cane. She didn't use it of course."

The girls listened to a Londoner's tale of 19th-century poverty and tried their hand at washing the laundry.

The Ragged School Museum, in Copperfield Road, opened in 1990 and aims to make history of the East End accessible to everyone. The building was previously used by Dr Barnardo to house the largest ragged school in London.