WI Badges

Shown here are WI badges from Boxford WI for the positions of President and Treasurer.

There is also a green badge for the Associated Country Women of the World (ACWW) which was set up by Mrs Madge Watts in 1933, the Canadian who was originally tasked with setting up WIs in Britain in 1915.

The WI badge has a rose on the left to represent England and a maple leaf on the right as a reference to the WIs Canadian origins. The WI motto “For Home and Country” was also derived from Canada, but was very appropriate during wartime Britain.

The Berkshire Federation

The first meeting of the Berkshire County Federation of Women’s Institutes was held on 31st January 1920. Mrs Emily Morrell was Chairman and there were 15 delegates present from WIs across the county as follows: Buckland, Burghfield, Curridge, Finchampstead, Greenham, Hare Hatch, Hermitage, Littlewick, Sandhurst, Shaw & Donnington, Shrivenham, Sonning, Streatley, Woodley and Yattendon & Frilsham. Just 10 years later there were 82 delegates.

The federation aimed to abide by the constitution and rules set out by the National Federation (on display here). The aim was to establish a mutual helpfulness between WIs in the county and co-ordinating their work. Sub-committees were set up to deal with specific aspects of WI functions such as Health and General Education, Finance, Music and Drama. Later, a social half hour followed the business of the meetings which gave the ladies a chance to relax over a nice cup of tea. 

From the federation minutes we can discover more about the aspects that affected the whole county. Together with records of local branches, we get a real insight into WI life in Berkshire.