Hi, thanks for popping in.  My name is Ruth Cherrington - some of my earliest childhood memories are of being taken  to the local working men’s club.  It was just across the street and was almost like an extension of our living room.  The club dominated our social life and as I grew up I realised what a huge role these clubs played in the life of local communities and were always about very much more than beer and bingo.

I was saddened when the clubs started to go into decline and now I am fully involved with finding out more about the social and community roles of working men’s clubs,  I believe that the history of the key role that clubs played in communities needs documenting before too many more clubs close .

 Many of the older generation of club men, such as my own father, are no longer with us.  They had stories to tell.  Many clubs have also been lost but it’s not too late to document what they provided for young and old alike in their post-war heyday.  In doing so, other people might take notice and perhaps feel more inclined to assist the CIU and others in keeping the club movement alive and well.

If you have any interesting memories about your club then I’d be happy for you to contact me.  I still go to clubs, by the way, and still like to play bingo!   Old habits die hard.