Fonds GB 106 5BWW - Women for Westminster Bournemouth Branch

0.5 A box

GB 106 5BWW 1943-1946 fonds 0.5 A box Women for Westminster , Bournemouth Branch

Women for Westminster (1943-1949) was established in 1943. In 1940 Edith Summerskill raised the issue of women in parliament within the Six Point Group. This produced an initiative with the aim of returning 100 women to parliament. However, the war and other concerns meant that it was not until Mrs Rebecca Sieff and Teresa Billington-Greig established a committee within the Women's Publicity Planning Association (WPPA) to deal with the issue in Jan 1942 that attention was paid to this area by a single issue group. The committee eventually became an independent organisation the following year with the name of Women for Westminster. It was a non-party organisation with a number of local branches which aimed to encourage women in individual constituency parties to nominate a woman candidate, thus avoiding the hostility aroused when outside women's organisations attempted to apply pressure. Summerskill, Tate, Cazalet-Keir and Corbett Ashby were all members but the group had limited success: in 1945, out of 87 women candidates, only 12 were returned and they already held seats. Despite having 46 branches, financial problems beset the organisation, which received only £1,000 in 1946. By the end of the decade, they were under pressure to amalgamate with other organisations. They refused an approach from the Six Point Group but accepted a merger with the National Women's Citizenship Association in 1949.

Deposited in Dec 1975 by Mrs Middleton.

The archive consists of minutes of the Bournemouth branch meetings and of the Executive Committee.

This collection is available for research. Readers are advised to contact The Women's Library in advance of their first visit.

English

Fawcett Library Catalogue

Related papers held at The Women's Library include: the papers of the national body of the Women for Westminster group, its Hampstead branch and its predecessor the Central Women's Electoral Committee, as well as those of the predecessor organisation the Central Women's Electoral Committee, are contained in the Women's Library amongst the papers of Teresa Billington-Greig (see 7TBG) while the Women's Library also holds the papers of the Women's Publicity and Planning Association (see 5WPP).

Finding aid created by export from CALM v7.2.14 Archives Hub EAD2002. Edited for AIM25 by Sarah Drewery.

In compliance with ISAD (G): General International Standard Archival Description - 2nd Edition (1999); UNESCO Thesaurus, December 2001; National Council on Archives Rules for the Construction of Personal, Place and Corporate Names, 1997.

24/01/2008 Women Organizations Associations Womens organizations Social behaviour Social participation Womens participation Internal politics Political leadership Politicians Women in politics Greig , Teresa Mary , Billington- , 1877-1964 , suffragist and political theorist Glasgow Women's Representation Committee Central Women's Electoral Committee Six Point Group Women for Westminster Sex Sex distribution

Deposited in Dec 1975 by Mrs Middleton.

The archive consists of minutes of the Bournemouth branch meetings and of the Executive Committee.

This collection is available for research. Readers are advised to contact The Women's Library in advance of their first visit.

• English

• Latin

English

Related papers held at The Women's Library include: the papers of the national body of the Women for Westminster group, its Hampstead branch and its predecessor the Central Women's Electoral Committee, as well as those of the predecessor organisation the Central Women's Electoral Committee, are contained in the Women's Library amongst the papers of Teresa Billington-Greig (see 7TBG) while the Women's Library also holds the papers of the Women's Publicity and Planning Association (see 5WPP).

Fawcett Library Catalogue

In compliance with ISAD (G): General International Standard Archival Description - 2nd Edition (1999); UNESCO Thesaurus, December 2001; National Council on Archives Rules for the Construction of Personal, Place and Corporate Names, 1997.

• English