What does this mean?

[Helina]

On the 1861 census translation Susan Woodward is down as a improver instead of S or M etc "Relation Improver"  cannot see it on the original. Any ideas would be welcome

helina

[JenB]

Please can you give the census reference for the particular person you are talking about?
I can see 35 people called Susan Woodward in 1861!

[stanmapstone]

For questions like this, to give a considered reply it is better to give all the details, for instance where does it have  "Relation Improver" ? if you can't give the census reference, at least give her age and location.

Stan

[Helina]

Out for the day will give details when I return. Helina

[stanmapstone]

It is RG 9; Piece: 20; Folio: 105; Page: 69; the census has
Name:   Susan Woodward
Age:   42
Estimated Birth Year:   1819
Relation:   Improver
Gender:   Female

Her occupation is Dressmaker.

Stan

[Kay99]

Improver looks like her ability as a dressmaker.  The person before her is also an improver and the woman before that is an apprentice - all are dressmakers living with the Head of the household whose occupation I can't read

Kay

[Tickettyboo]

Please can you give the census reference for the particular person you are talking about?
I can see 35 people called Susan Woodward in 1861!

me too but then I tried (on Ancestry) putting Improver into the keyword field and this census came up

Piece 20, folio 105, page 69

and the transcript does say Relation: Improver

Looking at the image,  Head of the household is Thomas Godwin, Steward Dom[estic] Servant,
wife Frances Godwin is a dressmaker
Then there are 4 "unmarried"  - that's in the correct column, females listed (all with occ of dressmaker)

Caroline Weiss relationship col : App (apprentice), age 17
Katherine Kanelly relationship col: Improver, age 30
Susan Woodward   dittoed the above , age 42
Ellen White  relationship col Serv[ant]

At a guess (given the ages) an improver could be someone who'd completed her basic apprenticeship and continued to 'improve' or widen her skills but was not yet top of the tree within the business hierarchy .
I'd imagine that unless they were able to start their own business they possibly may be Improvers till they retired :-)

Boo

[oldfashionedgirl]

Does it say ‘unknown’ written in a scruffy, hasty way ?
It would make sense re the relationship to the house holder if the person answering the question i.e. a child/young person didn’t know

[Neale1961]

A dressmaker improver - someone who did alterations to clothes, rather than make new clothes?