About our club

Soroptimist International of Wakefield and District covers the geographical area of Wakefield Metropolitan district in West Yorkshire UK, including Wakefield, Ossett, Horbury, Normanton, Castleford, Pontefract, Featherstone, Knottingley, South Elmsall and Hemsworth

A club by women for women, where everyone is heard

We are like-minded women working together to improve the lives of women and girls. Education, Empowerment and Enablement are our main focus. Soroptimist International is a global volunteer movement working together to transform the lives of women and girls with nearly 72000 members in 121 countries. The majority of members belong to their local club, where they can make friends with like-minded women and work on projects – local, national and international, always with an aim to educate, empower and enable women and girls.

 

Become a member

Our club welcomes new members. Get in touch or attend one of our meetings to meet us and find out more about the work we do.

Club information

Who we are

The Wakefield club is quite small, with 21 members, but we have been involved in many projects over recent years and have formed partnerships with numerous local and national good causes. You will be made very welcome if you would like to come along one evening (with no obligation to join!).

When and where we meet

We are a friendly club, enjoying various social activities and we meet at the Barnabas rooms at St. Paul’s church, Walton every 2nd and 4th Thursday at 7.30pm

Club Programme

We alternate meetings between business meetings, where we discuss club projects and fundraising and speaker/social events, where we learn more about a variety of topics and enjoy each others company.

Club History

The Wakefield club was officially formed on the 19th February 1934 with Leeds as the mother club and Harrogate as the sister club. It was the 28th club within the National Union of Soroptimist Clubs, with an initial membership of 24. The Charter was presented at the inaugural dinner on 19th March 1934 to the first president and founder member Miss Elsie Schofield BA (HM Inspector of Factories).

Club Leadership

Officers of the club 2026 – 2027 include: Joint Presidents – Linda Phillips and Amanda Potts President Elect – Liz Lynagh Treasurer – Maureen Garforth Secretary – Lisette Gill Programme Action – Amanda Potts

Current Projects

Programme action is the heart of Soroptimism – it is what we do! It takes the format of service projects and fundraising. Club members made the decision to support local projects as much as possible, some of which are linked to national organisations.