History of SI Cirencester & District

Our History

The formation of the Cirencester Club was proposed in March 1948, when a member of Gloucester Club contacted Miss Kitty Tucker. An informal meeting of people who might be interested in joining Soroptimist International in the local area was held at Stonewells, Victoria Road. The first official meeting was held on 13th May 1948 at The Beeches Community Centre and Mrs Boutflour was the first elected president. Cirencester is the daughter club of Gloucester (and subsequently Swindon became the daughter club of Cirencester) The Charter dinner was held at Stratton House Hotel on 6th January 1949. Miss G. Holloway, the National President, presented the Charter to the Club.

Meetings have been held at many venues and have taken many forms, initially Tea meetings were held at 5pm on the first Wednesday of the month and a coffee morning on the third Wednesday.

In 1954 Mrs Joyce Chambers became the first member of the Cirencester Club to hold the office of president of the South West Division Union (DU). In 1960 Miss Ida Kenworthy was elected DU President and in 1976 Miss Beryl Challen held this office. In 1987 Miss Margaret Edney became the third member of the club to hold this office. In 1997 Miss Jane Rowell held the office of President of the South West and Channel Island Region and Mrs Shirley Alexander held the office 2011-2012

Friendship Links were formed with the Winnipeg, Canada, Club in 1950, Nuoro, Sardinia in 1973, Banjul, The Gambia 1987 and Huddersfield, England in 1987.  Unfortunately these links have not survived. However, Friendship Links with Bury and Durham, both in England, established in 1999 are very active. Electronic mail is a great asset and support to and from these Clubs for all our projects and is much appreciated. In 2006, a link with SI/E Ogre-Kegums, Latvia was established.

In 1978 the club was left a bequest by Dorothy Minnis, a former Treasurer of the club. This legacy forms the Minnis Trust, the income for the investments are used for charitable purposes. It has enabled local young people to travel widely to further their education. The money has also been put to practical use for the benefit of local individuals and organisations.

Money raised by sales, fairs, concert and banquets have supported many charities over the years. Donations have been made to numerous disaster funds for various emergencies.

The Club has donated benches to the town, organised Anti-Litter campaigns and provided volunteers for flag days. It has been represented on trustee board for many local organisations, including the Opportunity Group, Guidepost Trust and C.H.Y.P. (Cirencester Housing for Young People) and The Churn Project. The Club is also active as a pressure group, lobbying councils and authorities to improve local amenities. We have also worked with MPs and councillors on national and environmental issues. Throughout it’s history the Cirencester Club has endeavoured to give service to the local community whilst keeping in touch with Soroptimism worldwide.

The Club celebrated its 75th anniversary this year with a Charter Lunch at the Stratton House Hotel, the venue for the very  first  Charter lunch in 1948. This year has also seen the continuation of the Anti-Spiking campaign and the “Orange the World” campaign, where we meet up in local cafes to raise awareness of the United Nations campaign to end Violence towards Women and Girls. The club held an awareness seminar on Modern Day Slavery and Human Trafficking at the Bingham Hall., where local charities, fellow Soroptimists from over the country and councillors where informed about the issues surrounding slavery in its many forms.