Working Men's Club and Institute Union
Encyclopedia
Voluntary association
A voluntary association or union is a group of individuals who enter into an agreement as volunteers to form a body to accomplish a purpose.Strictly speaking, in many jurisdictions no formalities are necessary to start an association...
of private members' club
Club
A club is an association of two or more people united by a common interest or goal. A service club, for example, exists for voluntary or charitable activities; there are clubs devoted to hobbies and sports, social activities clubs, political and religious clubs, and so forth.- History...
s in Great Britain
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
& Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
, with about 3,000 associate clubs. One club in the Republic of Ireland
Republic of Ireland
Ireland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...
, the City of Dublin Working Men's Club is also affiliated. Most social clubs are affiliated to the CIU.
They do not have to be working men's club
Working men's club
Working men's clubs are a type of private social club founded in the 19th century in industrial areas of the United Kingdom, particularly the North of England, the Midlands and many parts of the South Wales Valleys, to provide recreation and education for working class men and their families.-...
s, although most are. There are many village clubs, Royal British Legions, Labour
Labour Party (UK)
The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
Clubs, Liberal
Liberal Democrats
The Liberal Democrats are a social liberal political party in the United Kingdom which supports constitutional and electoral reform, progressive taxation, wealth taxation, human rights laws, cultural liberalism, banking reform and civil liberties .The party was formed in 1988 by a merger of the...
Clubs, and various other clubs involved. A member of one CIU affiliated club is entitled to use the facilities of all other CIU clubs, although they will only be entitled to vote in committee elections in clubs where they are full members.
The CIU has two main purposes: to provide a voice at national level for working men's clubs and social clubs; and to provide discounted products and services for its members.
History
The Club and Institute Union was founded by The Rev. Henry SollyHenry Solly
Henry Solly was an English social reformer. William Beveridge said of him: "He was a restless, inventive, constructive spirit, part author of at least three large living movements; charity organisation, working men's clubs, and garden cities".He was the son of Isaac Solly and became a Chartist...
in 1862. A great propagandist for clubs, he provided a much needed conceptual clarity to the notion of club work.
He was also an important advocate for the extension of working class
Working class
Working class is a term used in the social sciences and in ordinary conversation to describe those employed in lower tier jobs , often extending to those in unemployment or otherwise possessing below-average incomes...
political rights and helped to set up the Charity Organisation Society.
The CIU as a national body is non-political
Politics
Politics is a process by which groups of people make collective decisions. The term is generally applied to the art or science of running governmental or state affairs, including behavior within civil governments, but also applies to institutions, fields, and special interest groups such as the...
. Though individual clubs can be affiliated to political parties. Originally it was a middle class
Middle class
The middle class is any class of people in the middle of a societal hierarchy. In Weberian socio-economic terms, the middle class is the broad group of people in contemporary society who fall socio-economically between the working class and upper class....
led philanthropic
Philanthropy
Philanthropy etymologically means "the love of humanity"—love in the sense of caring for, nourishing, developing, or enhancing; humanity in the sense of "what it is to be human," or "human potential." In modern practical terms, it is "private initiatives for public good, focusing on quality of...
organisation aimed at education
Education
Education in its broadest, general sense is the means through which the aims and habits of a group of people lives on from one generation to the next. Generally, it occurs through any experience that has a formative effect on the way one thinks, feels, or acts...
and non-alcohol
Alcohol
In chemistry, an alcohol is an organic compound in which the hydroxy functional group is bound to a carbon atom. In particular, this carbon center should be saturated, having single bonds to three other atoms....
ic recreation. However, working men themselves soon took over the running of the CIU and drinks were allowed.
Victorian era
The Victorian era of British history was the period of Queen Victoria's reign from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. It was a long period of peace, prosperity, refined sensibilities and national self-confidence...
, the Liberal Working Men's Clubs were prevalent in increasing the Union's membership. Sometimes Liberal Clubs were called Gladstone Clubs in honour of the Prime Minister
Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
The Prime Minister of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the Head of Her Majesty's Government in the United Kingdom. The Prime Minister and Cabinet are collectively accountable for their policies and actions to the Sovereign, to Parliament, to their political party and...
William Ewart Gladstone
William Ewart Gladstone
William Ewart Gladstone FRS FSS was a British Liberal statesman. In a career lasting over sixty years, he served as Prime Minister four separate times , more than any other person. Gladstone was also Britain's oldest Prime Minister, 84 years old when he resigned for the last time...
. In some working-class areas local landowners and business owners would contribute to the cost however as land was relatively cheaper in those days, it was fairly easy for groups of men to buy the land and establish the clubs using their own skills and labour.
In the pre- and post-World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
era these clubs were often associated with trade societies and trade union
Trade union
A trade union, trades union or labor union is an organization of workers that have banded together to achieve common goals such as better working conditions. The trade union, through its leadership, bargains with the employer on behalf of union members and negotiates labour contracts with...
branches. In the miners' strike
UK miners' strike (1984–1985)
The UK miners' strike was a major industrial action affecting the British coal industry. It was a defining moment in British industrial relations, and its defeat significantly weakened the British trades union movement...
of the early 1980s, the Miners' Welfare Clubs were prominent in their support of the strike. Other such clubs can still be recognised by their title e.g. Engineers or Railwaymen's Clubs. There were also Socialist Clubs built before the establishment of the Labour Party. Labour Clubs were founded as that party grew in size in the 1920s. Generally, Conservative
Conservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
Clubs did not join as they formed their own federation. (though there are some). Servicemen returning from the Great War would also found clubs. Roman Catholic parishes had clubs. The only stipulation demanded for membership of the CIU was that clubs be owned by the members and accept the standards of membership. (Clubs were often subject to inspection.)
The wealthier clubs have sports pitches and dining facilities as well as indoor games and entertainment.
Many entertainers developed their skills in them over the years.
Until 2004, the CIU had its own beer brewed by the Federation brewery in Dunston, Tyne and Wear
Dunston, Tyne and Wear
Dunston was originally an independent village on the south bank of the River Tyne. It has now been absorbed into the Metropolitan Borough of Gateshead in the English county of Tyne and Wear...
. Although CIU affiliated clubs do still receive discounted beer
Beer
Beer is the world's most widely consumed andprobably oldest alcoholic beverage; it is the third most popular drink overall, after water and tea. It is produced by the brewing and fermentation of sugars, mainly derived from malted cereal grains, most commonly malted barley and malted wheat...
, these discounts are largely passed on to the members and Federation beer will generally be cheaper than beer available in local pubs. The brewery was taken over by Scottish & Newcastle
Scottish & Newcastle
Scottish & Newcastle plc was a "long alcoholic drinks" company with positions in 15 countries, including UK, France and Russia. It was headquartered in Edinburgh, Scotland, UK. In the last 20 years, S&N expanded significantly from its home base to become an international business with beer...
in 2004 and now brews Newcastle Brown Ale
Newcastle Brown Ale
Newcastle Brown Ale is a beer produced by Heineken International. It was introduced in 1927 by Newcastle Breweries. In 2005, brewing was moved out of Newcastle upon Tyne for the first time, to Dunston on the other side of the River Tyne, and in 2010 moved entirely to Tadcaster, North Yorkshire...
.
Together with other club organisations such as the Royal British Legion the Association of Conservative Clubs
Association of Conservative Clubs
The Association of Conservative Clubs is an organisation associated with theConservative Party in the United Kingdom. It represents and provides support to the largest association of political clubs in the country estimated at 1,100....
,The National Union of Liberal Clubs and The National Union of Labour and Socialist Clubs
National Union of Labour and Socialist Clubs
The National Union of Labour and Socialist Clubs is the federation representing Labour Social Clubs in Great Britain, and is a socialist society affiliated to the UK Labour Party. At present a relatively small number of these clubs actually affiliate to the NULSC. This is because many were...
the CIU is part of CORCA
Corçà
Corçà is a village in the province of Girona and autonomous community of Catalonia, Spain....
(Confederation of Registered Club Associations) which lobbies
Lobbying
Lobbying is the act of attempting to influence decisions made by officials in the government, most often legislators or members of regulatory agencies. Lobbying is done by various people or groups, from private-sector individuals or corporations, fellow legislators or government officials, or...
Parliament
Parliament of the United Kingdom
The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom, British Crown dependencies and British overseas territories, located in London...
on behalf of clubs. This was active in the recent debate about smoking
Tobacco smoking
Tobacco smoking is the practice where tobacco is burned and the resulting smoke is inhaled. The practice may have begun as early as 5000–3000 BCE. Tobacco was introduced to Eurasia in the late 16th century where it followed common trade routes...
. As most clubs are known as the haven of the working man who likes to drink and smoke (in many cases without any women in the bar
Bar (establishment)
A bar is a business establishment that serves alcoholic drinks — beer, wine, liquor, and cocktails — for consumption on the premises.Bars provide stools or chairs that are placed at tables or counters for their patrons. Some bars have entertainment on a stage, such as a live band, comedians, go-go...
), there is a degree of justifiable concern about the future prospects of clubs.
The CIU holds a national congress every year and as part of its activities runs convalescent homes. In may ways it could be said to be the oldest surviving friendly society still run by its members and if it were to fold would be a sad loss to the cultural life of working class families.
Today
The Working Men's Club and Institute has come a long way since 1862. However, it could be said that working men's clubs have suffered from an old-fashioned image among young people and have found it hard to compete with modern trends, resulting in many closures of clubs in recent years. The problem has recently become acute, particularly in relation to anti-smoking legislation in which the CIU lobbied MPs to exempt clubs from. It seems increasingly that Working Mens Clubs are seen as irrelevant by those in power, being a bastion of an outdated culture which they know little of. However, the CIU has changed in recent years and women are now allowed full membership rights. Some clubs have broadened their appeal by letting local community groups use the facilities. It remains to be seen whether the CIU will still be a force in years to come, this will depend partly on the clubs themselves but also on politicians who up to now have shown scant interest in this British working-class institution.
The Working Men's Club and Institute Unions HQ is in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
.
The current National Officials of the Union
- President - George Dawson CMD
- Vice President - John Tobin
- General Secretary - Mick McGlasham