Identity area
Type of entity
Authorized form of name
Parallel form(s) of name
Standardized form(s) of name according to other rules
Other form(s) of name
Identifiers for corporate bodies
Description area
Dates of existence
History
The National United Temperance Council (NUTC) was founded in July 1896 at a National Conference of County United Temperance Councils. The aim of both County and National United Temperance Councils was to consolidate support amongst various temperance organisations for temperance legislation and to promote the temperance movement in general.
The London United Temperance Council (LUTC) was the second County United Temperance Council to be formed (after Essex) in January 1895 and the NUTC followed its example in terms of constitutional structure and aims (see ACC/2425/1 and ACC/ 2425/25-28 for early constitutions).
From 1932 to 1948 the NUTC and LUTC were amalgamated. When the LUTC was reconstituted as a separate organisation in 1948 (mainly in response to London County Council's plans to license sale of alcohol in London parks) they shared a joint secretary and treasurer with the NUTC. From the 1950's, records of LUTC meetings can be found among minutes of NUTC meetings. Both the NUTC and the LUTC were financed by subscriptions, donations, legacies, association fees (from affiliated temperance societies), collections and sales.
The early years of the NUTC involved the organising of campaigns for Sunday closing and for legislation to prevent the sale of alcohol to children. Both the NUTC and the LUTC were active in lobbying M.P.s, local public bodies, county councillors and school boards concerning temperance issues and in monitoring and opposing applications for licences at Brewster sessions. They organised demonstration marches for all age groups, organised temperance missions held in hired halls, ran advertising campaigns, and published and distributed temperance literature including their own magazine, The United Temperance Gazette. The NUTC and LUTC also provided various social (and fund-raising) activities for their members such as annual fetes and prize competitions for reciting, essay-writing and singing. In later years, issues such as non-alcoholic communion wine, sale of alcohol in London parks and licensing in airports commanded their attention.
Memorial Hall in Farringdon Street, EC1 was the headquarters of both the NUTC and the LUTC until 1949 when they were bequeathed a house at 165 CIapham Road, Stockwell, by Dr. Annie McCall. This was a four storey Georgian terraced house. The majority of surviving NUTC papers from this date concern the maintenance of this property in terms of repairs and tenancy. It was sold in 1985 to the tenants except for two rooms. In 1987 the NUTC moved to smaller premises in Regent Street.
At present the NUTC continues to be funded by individual subscription and continues to give advice to the public on opposing licence applications.