In the first Leaders Meeting of his new ministry a conversation took place on the new building schemes that were being carried out in the local area. The minutes reported: "It was felt that no immediate steps could be taken although the matter must be continually borne in mind." The minutes went on: "At attempt should be made to inaugurate a Women's Meeting at Acocks Green to be held on a weeknight, and that a meeting of ladies should be called to decide on a course of action." The distinction drawn between the ladies of the church and the women of the surrounding estates grates on the ear today, but if the distinction was observed it was not meant to be derogatory.

The major reconstruction of the church in 1927 held up the plans for the women's meeting but in December of that year the ladies of the church formed a sub-committee to consider the desirability of a house to house visitation scheme of the new estates around the church. One of our elderly church members of today recalls that this committee visited over 1000 homes, inviting the wives and mothers to attend for one hour weekly the proposed new meeting.

On August 27th, 1928, with the Rev. G.B. Robson in the chair, the first committee meeting was held. "The committee moved and seconded that the new meeting, to be called the Womens Cheerful Hour, should hold its first meeting on Monday, October 8th, 1928." Some measure of the numerical strength of the church can be shown by the fact that the committee consisted of 39 ladies, who between them carried out the duties of president, vice presidents, secretaries, treasurers, registrars, welcomers, musical committee, piano players and speaker's secretary. The efforts of the visitation committee were proved well worth while because three months later the treasurer was asked to purchase 9 dozen crackers (one for each member) for the New Year social and the Musical Committee decided to ask the "Lads of the Green" to provide the entertainment. Each member of the Cheerful Hour was given a card for registration which was marked at every attendance. Yearly prizes were given for regular attendance. It was only during the month of August that the meeting was not held. Mothers with young children had an hour's weekly respite from their offspring as two ladies looked after then in the choir vestry.

On the first Monday of every month tea and biscuits were provided at the cost of ld. per person, except for the New Year's social, when cakes were substituted for biscuits at no extra charge.

Only three months after the inaugural meeting the committee decided that as a matter of urgency it should provide a 'Maternity Bag' which could be borrowed by the members upon their confinement and returned after one month. Its contents included towels, linen and baby clothes and other articles useful to a new mother after her confinement. As long as all articles were returned clean and in a satisfactory condition at the end of the month the new mother was given 2/6d. Another practical method of relieving hardship of some members was the redeeming of articles from pawn. The minute book records that in January, 1929: "Mrs ... of Thornfield Road, was given l2/6d to redeem her blankets."

The list of speakers for the first years gives some indication of the nature of the meetings. Devotional meetings alternated with speakers on topical or practical subjects and musical evenings. There were also yearly meetings devoted to Home and Foreign Missions. A large number of the speakers came from within the church, but during the first three years outside speakers came to talk on such diverse subjects as "My experiences in China", "A recipe for happiness", "First Aid in the home" and "Birth Control". This last talk was given in 1931 when opposition was still great towards those doctors and women advocating its use to relieve untold numbers of women from the debilitating effects of yearly pregnancies.

The yearly summer outings were events saved for and much enjoyed by all the members. The first such outing was a visit in June, 1929, to Symonds Yat. It is recorded that a 9.30 a.m. start was made by sixty-three members and helpers with transport provided by Midland Red coach. This enabled them to spend six hours at the beauty spot before departure at 6.30p.m. and arriving home at 9.45 p.m. The cost to each member was l0/6d. This included the coach travel, cup of tea on arrival, a tea of bread, butter, eggs, green salad, fruit and cream and cakes with enough left over to tip the drivers and the head waitress 5/- each. Thanks were recorded in the minutes to Rev Robson who kindly volunteered to take in his car three extra women who had turned up unexpectedly on the day of the outing. Presumably Mr. Robson did not qualify for a 5/- tip. Other outings in those pre-war summers included trips to Church Stretton, Weston, Rhyl and the Cotswolds. Perhaps because of more comfortable coaches, the operator favoured in later years was Allenways Coaches. The New Year socials grew in numbers attending and the quantity and quality of food and entertainment provided. No longer was a cake and a cup of tea considered sufficient. Instead, a sit down tea followed by community singing, dancing and entertainment by the "Lads of the Green" was enjoyed by between 130 and 140 members and friends.

In 1932 the committee agreed to spend two guineas a year in providing what were called Dispensary Notes for Cheerful Hour members who were unable to afford the full cost of medicines in times of illness. From the minutes it is not clear how this system worked, but it is believed that this was a system dating from the times of the old Poor Law, when magistrates and ministers of religion could hand these Dispensary tickets out to worthy cases, to be redeemed for medicine at the General Dispensary in Birmingham. The 1938 A.G. committee meeting recorded: "A hundred homes are surely better because the mothers attend and return refreshed spiritually and physically." Although this was a worthy sentiment no thought had been given as yet towards encouraging these mothers from the estates to stand themselves for election to the committee, which was still entirely composed of women members of the church congregation. Almost alone amongst the weeknight activities of the church the Womens Cheerful Hour did not cease to meet after the 'phoney' war of late 1939/early 1940 turned into the grim realities of the 1940s autumn blitz. A concession was made by altering the time of the meetings from Monday evening to Monday afternoon and membership dropped from 110 in 1938 to about 30 in 1941 because many members were doing war work in local factories. A spirit of optimism and patriotism is found in a minute of the 1940 A.G.M. when it was decided to cancel the summer outing: "all arrangements were made but because of Hitler's lightning invasion of Holland, Belgium and France and our anxiety for our Forces in those countries we decided to postpone our Outing till we had won the war."

In 1942 the meeting could still provide a monthly cup of tea and biscuits because several committee members gave part of their rations to help. In 1943 it was reported that the savings bank, which in peaceful years had helped the members to save for their outings, was not much used "because most housewives now belong to the National Savings Street Groups." During the war years the membership of the committee became more evenly divided between regular church goers and W.C.H. members - a welcome change. With the tide of war beginning to turn in favour of the Allies it was decided in 1943 to revert to evening meetings in the summer and afternoon meetings during winter. By 1944 the membership had risen again to 50 with an average attendance of 35. Sadly, the summer outing postponed from 1940, never took place as planned because for a few years from July, 1945, a garden party and social were substituted for it and held at the manse. It is believed that the summer outings were reintroduced in the 1960s. Regrettably no minute books have been found dating from beyond 1954. Mention can be made of Mrs. Jameson's seventeen years as speaker's secretary from being a founder member until her death in 1953. In 1965 Mrs. Rita Fitton resigned as general secretary after fifteen years in that post. Other members gave long and faithful service but unfortunately their lengths of tenure in office are not recorded.

In 1978, because of dwindling numbers, the Womens Cheerful Hour held its last meeting on July 3rd, with eight members present. Over the years, since its inception, its nature had changed gradually from providing both spiritual and practical help to women of the neighbourhood to being a meeting loved by a faithful few of the older women of the church. Right up until its closure a varied programme of speakers was arranged, but increasing age and lack of mobility of its members forced its closure. In its earliest days it had provided a social and spiritual link between the Methodist church and the neighbourhood and had not been afraid to speak out and provide practical help for many women who might otherwise never have found an hour's respite from the never ending toil of house and family.

Introduction

Preface

"Methodists as they are term'd"

The first church

The present church to 1927

The present church from 1927 to 1986

The Memorial Windows

Ministers

Organists and choir

The Tin Tabernacle

The Junior Church

The Junior Missionary Association

Uniformed organisations

The Guild/Circle

The Ladies Sewing Meeting

The Women's Cheerful Hour

Recreation Clubs

Subscribers to New Church Building Fund 1882

Names in the corridor of the Sunday School building

Roll of Honour

Church Trusts 1874 to 1976

Caretakers

Endpiece

Bibliography