Minutes of the Royal College of Nursing Council meetings

Scope and Content

Meetings were held roughly every month, and the minutes of each meeting start with noting date, time and place. Items standard at each meeting: Present, letters and messages of regret, minutes of previous meeting, matters arising, correspondence, reports of standing committees (Finance Committee, Professional Association Committee, Establishment and General Purposes Committee, Education Committee, Public Health Section, Branches Standing Committee, Sister Tutor Section, Scottish Board, Committee for Northern Ireland, Private Nurses Section, Student Nurses Central Representative Council) and date of next meeting.

In 1945, Council members discussed:

War Emergency Committee

Coat of Arms design

Equal pay and equal opportunity

Circumcision of women

Government white paper on a National Health Service

Victory in Europe (end of the Second World War in Europe)

Visit of Her Royal Highness Princess Elizabeth to open the new library

Test examinations and aptitude tests

Trade unions activities

General Secretary's visit to America

Attempted suicide as a crime

Indexed.

This record relates to two separate sets of minutes: the original set is signed. This volume is kept in Store B.

The other set is a copy of the original. This volume is kept in Store A.

Access Information

This collection is available for research. Readers are advised to contact the RCN Archives in advance of their first visit.

Other Finding Aids

Most recent online Royal College of Nursing Archives Catalogue is available at http://www.rcn.org.uk/development/library_and_heritage_services.

Conditions Governing Use

Royal College of Nursing

Custodial History

The main bulk of volumes came from London library historical collection to Edinburgh with the Archives' collections in 1992. Library maintained a copy set. From 1992 up until 2009 the papers were transferred directly by Council and Committee Admin (previously 'General Secretariat', or 'General Secretary's Office') One copy went to RCN Library for binding and the original to Archives, unbound. In January 2017 the two sets were brought together to create one full run of papers and an additional run, with copies of most years. The more complete set is held in Store A and the less complete set in Store B.