The Women’s Institute (WI) is a British, community-based organisation for women. It was formed in 1915 with two clear aims: to revitalise rural communities and to encourage women to become more involved in producing food during the First World War. Since then the organisation's aims have broadened and it is now the largest women’s voluntary organisation in the UK. The organisation celebrated its 95th anniversary in 2010 and currently has approximately 208,000 members in 7,000 WIs.[1]
The WI plays a unique role in providing women with educational opportunities and the chance to build new skills, to take part in a wide variety of activities and to campaign on issues that matter to them and their communities.
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The national headquarters of the WI, the National Federation of Women's Institutes (NFWI), is in London. There is also an office in Cardiff, NFWI-Wales, and a residential college in Oxfordshire, Denman College. The NFWI produces a membership magazine WI Life. WI Enterprises is the trading arm of the organisation and exists to raise funds and provide benefits for members. In 2010, there are approximately 205,000 members of 6,500 Women's Institutes in England, Wales and the islands, linked through the Associated Country Women of the World[2] to other WIs worldwide.
Every individual WI meets at least once a month and there is usually a speaker, demonstration or activity at every meeting for members to learn and develop a range of different skills.
Craft has always played an important role in the WI and thousands of members are involved in a range of different crafts across England and Wales.
The Women's Institute is often associated with food, cooking and healthy eating, and food and cooking form an important part of the WI's history.
The WI movement began at Stoney Creek in Canada in 1897 when Adelaide Hoodless addressed a meeting for the wives of members of the Farmers' Institute. The first British WI meeting took place on 11 September 1915 at Llanfairpwll on Anglesey in North Wales. The WI was originally set up in the UK to revitalise rural communities and to encourage women to become more involved in producing food during the First World War.
The WI celebrated its 95th anniversary in 2010 and today plays a unique role in enabling women to gain new skills, take part in wide-ranging activities and campaign on issues that matter to them and their communities. The WI is a diverse organisation open to all women, and there are now WIs in towns and cities as well as villages.
Click [here][3] for further information on the organisation's history. Honorary Archivist, Anne Stamper, has provided this information using published materials, copies of the WI magazine Home and Country and other documents deposited in our archives.
The WI's archives are kept at the Women's Library at London Metropolitan University ref 5FWI and are open to the public. Further information can also be found at the Genesis project's website which develops access to women's history sources. WI and federation records are usually kept at local county record offices, search the National Register of Archives for more details.
Women's Institutes were formed in Scotland and Northern Ireland independently to those in England and Wales. The first Women's Rural Institute started in Scotland on 26 June 1917, and Madge Watt travelled up from London to speak to a meeting at Longniddry. After the end of the Great War, Watt returned to Canada where she continued as an activist for the interests of rural women. In 1930 she founded the Associated Country Women of the World (ACWW).
After the end of the First World War, the Board of Agriculture withdrew its sponsorship, although the Development Commission financially supported the work of the forming of new WIs and gave core funding to the NFWI until it could become financially independent. By 1926 the Women's Institutes were fully independent and rapidly became an essential part of rural life.
One of their features was an independence from political parties or institutions, or church or chapel, which encouraged activism by non-establishment women, which helps to explain why the WI has been extremely reluctant to support anything that can be construed as war work, despite their wartime formation. During the Second World War, they limited their contribution to such activities as looking after evacuees, and running the Government-sponsored Preservation Centres where volunteers canned or made jam of excess produce. All this produce was sent to depots to be added to the rations.
The NFWI archives, containing papers relevant to the work of the WI nationally from 1915 to 1991, are deposited at the Women's Library, London Metropolitan University, Old Castle Street, London E1 7NT.
In 1948 NFWI bought Marcham Park in Berkshire and converted it into a short-stay residential adult education college, called [Denman College][4] in honour of Lady Gertrude Denman. The college has grown and developed over the years and is now a well-appointed adult education centre attended by approximately 6,000 students each year. It is now open to non-members as well as members.
Founded on years of experience and culinary expertise, the WI Cookery School programme combines the teaching of traditional skills with innovative and creative ideas. The WI Cookery School offers a fantastic range of over 100 day schools, residential courses and family courses.
The courses are tutored by specialists with many years of experience and the ability to provide both fun and educational courses in a Cookery School equipped with the latest facilities, all situated within Denman College.
In 2003, a new-style urban Women's Institute was opened in Fulham, London.[2] This Women's Institute has been successful and the press attention it has generated has led to new WIs with younger female members opening steadily in its wake. There are now 30 branches of the WI in London and new urban branches of the organisation are opening every week across England and Wales.
In April 2010 Zoe Stroud decided to start a new WI in Cowes on the Isle of Wight. Zoe, aged 31 at the time, is believed to be one of the youngest presidents of a WI on the Isle of Wight if not the UK. [The president of Buns & Roses WI in Leeds was 24 when she formed the group.] At the first meeting over 50 ladies attended. Cowes WI acquired 42 members within a few short months of being created. The average age of Cowes WI is around 40 and activities already completed include wine tasting, fashion styling and breast awareness.
In 2010 it was announced that five members of the WI signed a record deal with Universal Music and would record an album to celebrate the 95th anniversary since the first ever WI meeting. This band was named The Harmonies and their debut album Voices of the W.I. was released in October 2010.
Published eight times a year, WI Life is delivered directly to more than 205,000 WI members. WI Life features articles and news stories showcasing the diversity and wide-ranging interests of members.
In keeping with the organisation's eco-friendly philosophy, the magazine is printed on 100 per cent recycled paper, using vegetable, rather than chemical-based, inks. The magazine wrapping is completely biodegradable.
In 2007, Neal Maidment became the first-ever male Editor in the history of WI magazines (which date back to 1919). He resigned from the role in May 2011.
During the 1920s, many WIs started choirs and NFWI set up a music committee and appointed a Mr Leslie as an advisor.
Mr Leslie held a one-day school for village conductors in London in early 1924. He asked his friend Sir Walford Davies to write an arrangement of Hubert Parry's setting of Jerusalem, for WI choirs. This hymn with its association with the fight for women's suffrage was appropriate for the newly emerging WI movement which was encouraging women to take their part in public life, and to fight to improve the conditions of rural life.
Mr Leslie suggested that Walford Davies' special arrangement for choir and string orchestra should be performed at the Annual General Meeting of NFWI held in the Queen's Hall, London in 1924. He himself conducted the singing, bringing a choir from local WIs with him to lead.
This was so successful that it has been sung at the opening of NFWI AGMs to this day. Many WIs also open meetings by singing Jerusalem. Although it has never actually been adopted as the WI's official anthem, in practice it holds that position.
On the 18th June 2010 a new `modern` version of Jerusalem was recorded at Abbey Road Studios, London. It features the entrants that applied for the `WI Search for a Star` competition. It is due for release on CD later in 2010.
The importance of home prepared foods is of perpetual importance and the institute runs its own markets, WI markets, where home based produce is sold. Modern hygiene regulations have often made this 'offensive' activity perilous, but so entwined are the ideals of the hymn and ongoing self-sufficiency that the ideology of the organisation is often called "Jam and Jerusalem"[3] WI fetes, cookery, and judging have frequency been satirised by Little Britain's "Maggie and Judy"[4] sketches. Maggie Blackamoor[5] is often perceived in the UK as the architypal member of the WI.
As of 28 February 2011, this article is derived in whole or in part from thewi.org.uk. The copyright holder has licensed the content utilized under CC-By-SA and GFDL. All relevant terms must be followed. The original text was at "History".