Key Information
Register:
NationalYear of Inscription:
2010Type of Heritage:
DocumentNominating Institution:
Women’s Voluntary Service
WVS/WRVS Narrative Records
The Women’s Voluntary Service for Air Raid Precautions was established by Lady Reading in May 1938. By 1943 WVS had just over one million members, making it one of the largest volunteering organisations in British history and had evolved to do just about anything. At the cessation of hostilities, the WVS transformed itself into one of the leading providers of social care; its activities and development over the following fifty years inextricably linked to the growth of the welfare state.
