National and Local Government Officers Association (NALGO)

This is the story of the National and Local Government Officers Association (NALGO), formerly known as the National Association of Local Government Officers.

Few trade unions can have been launched with quite such eminent support as the National Association of Local Government Officers. While others emerged from victimisation and struggle, NALGO could boast the town clerk of Liverpool as its first president, while among the ranks of its vice-presidents were Sir Homewood Crawford, solicitor to the City of London Corporation, the Earl of Derby, Neville Chamberlain and the knighted presidents of the local authority and professional institutes.

Without one man, however, NALGO might never have been born. Herbert Blain, the Liverpool-born local authority clerk who would go on to manage London Underground and become principal agent for the Conservative Party in the period covering the General Strike, had first launched himself into the project of local government organisation in 1896, when he founded the Liverpool Municipal Officers’ Guild. Although there had been earlier attempts to create a body to represent local government officers, this was the first which sought to include all grades from the town clerk to the office boy.

The energetic Blain succeeded in co-opting Sir William Forwood, an eminent former mayor of the city, and E R Pickmere, the town clerk, to hold honorary positions in the guild, and set about creating a highly successful friendly society with some 1,200 members and a track record of organising ambitious social events, including such delights as an eight-day trip to Paris and day trips to Llandudno for up to 2,000 members, their friends and families.

Blain sought to export his idea to other towns, and within four years similar organisations were active in Hull , Derby , Oldham, Tunbridge Wells, Poplar, Macclesfield, Belfast and in the Midlands , where one guild covered a number of local authorities. The chance to go national came in 1902, when the struggling London Municipal Officers Association approached Blain with proposal to join forces.

Although the plan foundered on the question of subscription fees, Blain was not deterred. In 1903, he left Liverpool to become manager of the new tramways department at West Ham. Blain joined the London Municipal Officers Association and succeeded in reviving its fortunes along the lines of his earlier guild, just as it was on the point of collapse. In July 1905, Blain’s efforts led to a conference at the Inns of Court Hotel, High Holborn, at which 14 representatives of local guilds and other organisations, such as the Institution of Municipal and County Engineers, agreed to create a National Association of Local Government Officers. The new body could boast some 5,000 members.

With Blain as chairman and Frank Ginn, assistant surveyor of Woodford and secretary of the Municipal Officers Association, as secretary, the new NALGO soon had a national executive up and running. Its members were from the founding guilds, plus those of West Ham, Ilford and Bradford. They were joined by representatives of the Sanitary Inspectors Association and the Urban Council Clerks’ Association.

NALGO’s federal constitution meant that much of the activity of its early years was local – and of a social nature. However, as early as 1905, Jabez Darricotte, editor of the Bolton guild journal, proposed a mutual insurance fund which would pay a small sum to the widows and families of local government officers who died in service. By 1910, this idea had been adopted nationally, leading to the creation of a Benevolent and Orphan Fund.

At Blain’s instigation, NALGO also entered into a contract with the firm of Hodgetts Ltd to endorse a magazine now to be known as The Local Government Officer and Contractor as the union’s official journal – a small but significant step towards giving NALGO’s locally focused membership a national orientation. Although neither the contract nor the journal lasted long, the principal had been established, and NALGO would continue to have a national voice.

However, the idea that NALGO was a trade union was anathema to its membership. Writing in the association’s journal in September 1910, L C Hill, its general secretary, declared: “Anything savouring of trade unionism is nausea to the local government officer and his Association.” This was not only the outcome of having a leadership drawn almost entirely from the ranks of local authority chief officers, but also the result of ordinary members’ widely held view that they were the social superiors of the sort of workers who joined unions.

By the close of the first world war, this attitude was no longer sustainable. Faced with competition for members from more militant organisations, and aware of the clamour to do more to protect their living standards, NALGO’s leadership sought ways of increasing its influence without having to become a trade union or, worse still, engage with the new Labour Party. Among the ideas mooted were a “Triple Alliance” of NALGO, the National Union of Teachers and the Poor Law Officers Association, and proposals to run NALGO parliamentary candidates.

The continued rejection of a move to trade unionism at NALGO’s conference in 1919 created a crisis. One third of the 650 members of the Hull branch joined the rival Municipal Employees Association. When new Labour councils across the country announced that in future they would employ only union members, the leaders of other branches seceded to the Workers Union. This feeling that NALGO and its leadership was too timid was particularly strong among returning servicemen, who came back from the trenches to find that the opportunities for advancement in local government that they had foregone had been taken up by the very same people who now wanted to prevent them fighting wholeheartedly for better working conditions.

At this point, and faced with the threat from many branches at NALGO’s conference on 31 January 1920 that their members would resign on mass if they continued to oppose trade unionism, the conservative leadership changed its policy. In due course, and after bitter wrangling over the precise nature of its conversion, NALGO sought a certificate from the Registrar of Friendly Societies confirming its status as a trade union, and the rot was halted. Despite a handful of defections, by the end of the year membership had risen by nearly 8,000 to 36,500.

The obvious next step was affiliation to the Trades Union Congress, and discussion of this duly began as early as 1921. However, it would take until 1964 for affiliation to be agreed. In the meantime, NALGO continued to grow. By 1946 it was the eighth largest trade union with nearly 140,000 members. That same year, the union changed its constitution to enable it to recruit employees in other public services such as the NHS and the electricity and gas boards. Six years later, in 1952, it was renamed the National and Local Government Officers Association (though it would continue to refer to itself as NALGO).

Over the years, NALGO moved a long way from its friendly society roots. In 1970, it sanctioned its first strike, and by the 1980s would be known as a stronghold of militant public sector trade unionism. However, in common with other unions, it was badly affected by the anti-trade union laws enacted by Conservative governments in that decade, and sought strength through merger with its two biggest rivals – the National Union of Public Employees and the Confederation of Health Service Employees.

In 1993, the three unions joined forces to create Unison.

Sources and notes

Books
Historical Directory of Trade Unions, vol 1, Arthur Marsh and Victoria Ryan (Gower, 1980).
White Collar Union: Sixty Years of NALGO , Alec Spoor (Heinemann, 1967).
Facing up to Thatcherism: The History of NALGO 1979-93, Michael Ironside and Roger Seifert (Oxford University Press, 2001).

Further information
Papers of the National And Local Government Officers Association, Modern Records Centre, Warwick University (external link).

Presidents of NALGO

Year	Name	Employed as…
1906-07	E R Pickmere	Town Clerk of Liverpool
1907-24	Sir Homewood Crawford	Solicitor to the City of London Corporation
1924-31	Arthur P Johnson	Town Clerk of Hampstead (knighted 1932)
1931-32	Sam Lord	Borough Treasurer of Acton
1932-33	F Marsden	City Engineer and Surveyor, Bradford
1933-34	C G Brown	Town Clerk of Cardiff
1934-35	Dr A Wotherspoon	Medical Officer of Health, Stoke-on-Trent
1935-36	G W Coster	Clerk to the West Derby Assessment Committee, Liverpool
1936-37	W E Lloyd	Borough Treasurer, Hampstead
1937-38	W W Armitage	Principal Assistant, Water Department, Sheffield
1938-39	J L Holland	Secretary of Education, Northampton County Council
1939-43	E J Stead	County Surveyor, Somerset
1943-44	C A W Roberts OBE	Manager of Walton Hospital, Liverpool
1944-45	A A Garrard OBE	Assistant Secretary to the Education Committee, East Ham
1945-46	F H Harrod CBE	Director of Education, Coventry
1946-47	D J Parry CBE	Clerk to Glamorgan County Council
1947-48	C J Newman OBE	Town Clerk of Exeter
1948-49	P H Harrold OBE	Town Clerk of Hampstead
1949-50	E A S Young	Assistant Director of Education, Willesden
1950-51	E L Riley	Establishment Officer, Liverpool
1951-52	L Bevan	Clerk and Steward, Hensol Castle Mental Deficiency Colony, Pontyclun, Glamorgan
1952-53	W Strother	Borough Engineer and Surveyor, Bethnal Green
1953-54	T Nolan	Accountant to the Leeds sub-area of the Yorkshire Electricity Board
1954-55	L H Taylor	Chief Administrative Assistant in the Town Clerk’s Department, Salford
1955-56	P H Harrold OBE	Town Clerk of Hampstead
1956-57	J Pepper	Establishment Officer, East Midlands Electricity Board
1957-58	A E Odell	Deputy Town Clerk of Poplar
1958-59	A E Nortrop	Deputy Borough Education Officer, Luton
1959-60	N W Bingham	Chief Clerk, Children’s Department, Kent County Council
1960-61	G T Belton	Deputy Clerk to Basford Rural District Council
1961-62	R Evans	Clerk to Blackwell Rural District Council
1962-63	G R Ashton MBE	Clerk and Chief Financial Officer to Keynsham Urban District Council
1963-64	L W G Hetherington	District Commercial Engineer, London Electricity Board
1964-65	C A Smallman MBE	Senior Welfare Officer, Birmingham
1965-66	S Duncan	County Publicity Officer, Lancashire
1966-67	Miss M W Curtin	Matron, Moxley Hospital, Wednesbury

General Secretaries of NALGO

Years	Name	Previous career
1905-09	Frank E Ginn	Assistant Surveyor, Woodford UDC (Honorary)
1909-43	Levi Clement Hill CBE	Formerly a clerk in the Borough Treasurer’s department at Bolton, secretary of the Bolton Municipal Officers’ Guild, and one of the Guild’s delegates to NALGO’s NEC from its fourth meeting in May, 1906, until his appointment.
1943-45	John Simonds	From 1912 to 1930 Secretary of the National Poor Law Officers’ Association; appointed NALGO’s Legal Officer, Insurance Secretary, and General Manager of Logomia when the NPLOA merged with NALGO in 1930; and promoted to Deputy General Secretary in 1936.
1945-46	Haden Corser	One of the first three district secretaries appointed in 1919; promoted to Chief Organisation Officer in 1944 and Deputy General Secretary in 1945. Acting General Secretary 1945-46.
1946-57	John Herbert Warren OBE	A local government officer from 1911, appointed Assistant Solicitor at Birkenhead in 1933, Clerk of Newton-le-Willows Urban District Council in 1935, and Town Clerk of Slough in 1939. He was a member of NALGO’s NEC from 1935 to 1946.
1957-	Walter Charles Anderson	Formerly Assistant Solicitor at Bootle and Deputy Town Clerk of Heywood; joined NALGO staff as assistant solicitor in 1937; was promoted to Legal Officer in succession to John Simonds in 1946; appointed Deputy General Secretary when Haden Corser retired in 1950; and succeeded John Warren as General Secretary in 1957. In 1965, Mr Anderson was elected to the General Council of the Trades Union Congress and in 1966 was appointed a member of the Royal Commission on the Civil Service.

Treasurers of NALGO

Years	Name	Employed as
1905-08	W Crowther	Borough Librarian, Derby
1908-16	J W Forster	Borough Accountant, Tunbridge Wells
1916-24	Sam Lord	Treasurer, Acton Urban District Council
1924-25	C H Patterson	Borough Treasurer, West Ham
1925-37	W E Lloyd	Borough Treasurer, Hampstead
1937-43	W H Legh-Smith	City Treasurer, Liverpool
1943-46	S Whitehead	Borough Treasurer, Hammersmith
1946-52	J H Robinson	City Treasurer, Leeds
1952-61	John Ruscoe	Treasurer of the City, Bradford
1961-	B T Jennings	Borough Treasurer, East Ham, later Newham

NALGO national executive council members, 1918-1966

Name	First and last employments while in office	Years in office
E W B Abbott	Director of Education, Maidstone	1918-32; VP 1927-32
R Adams	Clerical Assistant – Divisional Supervisor, Assessor’s Dept, Edinburgh	1939-49
W A Adkins	Chief Administrative Assistant, Clerk’s Dept, East Ham – Chief Clerk, Clerk’s Dept, Newham	1963-
E Alderton	Warden, Bexley Adult Education Centre, Kent – Area Principal, Adult Education, Bexley	1959-66
T Alker	Town Clerk, Liverpool, HS	1959-63
H Allen	Senior Clerk, Treasurer’s Dept, West Riding CC	1933-46
L T Allen	Housing Inspector, Nottingham	1965-66
H J Altoun	Rating Officer, Hastings	1936-43
L G Amabilino	Administrative Officer, Education Dept, Isle of Wight CC	1960-65
Miss M Anderson	Superintendent of Meals, Education Dept, West Ham	1945-48
A Anderton	Senior Accountancy Assistant, Walsall – Finance Officer, Walsall Hospital Management Committee	1947-50; 1951-53; 1962-63
W F Appleton	Chief Public Health Inspector, Portsmouth	1949-67
A G M Archibald	Chemist, City Analyst’s Dept, Glasgow	1921-41; Tr 1936-41; VP 1938-41
W W Armitage	Book-keeper and Collector – Principal Assistant, Water Dept, Sheffield	1922-38; VP 1935-37; P 1937-38
P Ashen	Works Chemist – West Midlands Gas Board	1949-50
G R Ashton MBE	Clerk and Chief Financial Officer, Keynsham UDC	1947-65; VP 1960-62; P 1962-63
A H Aubertin	Chief Administrative Officer, Roads and Bridges Dept, East Suffolk CC	1948-52
W G Auger	Sanitary Inspector, St Pancras	1930-34
E F Bacon	Superintendent, Attendance and Juvenile Welfare Dept – Assistant Education Officer, Norfolk CC	1936-51
F Bainbridge	Committee Clerk – Administrative Assistant, Clerk’s Dept, Durham CC	1942-54
A J Baker	Area Collection Supervisor, Eastern Gas Board	1963-
J T Baker	Rate Collector – Area Officer (Rating), Lambeth	1928-42; Tr 1939-41
W A N Baker	Chief Sanitary Inspector, Maidstone	1935-44; 1947-50
S E Bambridge	Senior Commercial Assistant, London Electricity Board	1965-
F D Barton	Engineer and Surveyor, Hammersmith	1937-43
A Batley	Clerk-in-Charge, Secretarial Section, Works Dept – Assistant Administrative Officer, Health Dept, Leeds	1949-53
O Baxter	Chief Clerk, Education Dept, Middlesbrough	1950-56
P F Beels	Senior Administrative Assistant, Education Dept, Middlesex CC – Chief Administrative Assistant, Education Dept, Enfield	1958-59; 1960-66
Mrs K M Beevers	Supervisor, Oxley Special Training Centre, Wolverhampton	1966-
W R Beevers	Hospital Steward, Sheffield	1939-49
H Begg	County Veterainary Inspector, Lanarkshire	1921-36; Tr 1922-36
G T Belton	Deputy Clerka nd Rating and Valuation Officer – Clerk of the Council, Basford RDC	1944-65; VP 1958-60; P 1960-61
J Besserman	Senior Assistant Solicitor – Assistant Town Clerk, Coventry	1955-
L Bevan	Clerk and Steward, Hensol Castle Mental Deficiency Colony, Glamorganshire – Hospital Secretary, Morgannwg Hospital Management Committee	1941-62; VP 1950-51; P 1951-52
H Bewes	Senior Mains Clerk, Eastern Electricity Board	1949-53
N W Bingham	Clerk, Education Dept – Chief Clerk, Children’s Dept, Kent CC	1944-; Tr 1953-57; VP 1957-59; P 1959-60
H Blizard	Committee Clerk – Principal Assistant, Town Clerk’s Dept, Hendon	1943-47
G H Blood	District Senior Clerk, Eastern Electricity Board	1951-54
A Blue	Clerk, Scottish Gas Board	1955-57; 1959-65
A G Boulton	Senior Accountancy Assistant, Harrogate	1929-48; Tr 1941-48
T W Bottomley	Assistant Education Officer, Dewsbury	1936-37
E M Bourne	Assistant Accountant, Hull	1945-49
T D Bradford	Chief Cashier, Treasurer’s Dept, Hampstead	1948-53
T E Brierley	Section Head, Treasurer’s Dept, Coventry	1953-65; Tr 1960-65
S H Brodie	Chief Divisional Clerk, Assessor’s Dept, Glasgow – Establishment Officer, South-West Scotland Electricity Board	1945-51
C G Brown	Town Clerk, Cardiff	1925-34; HS 1927-33; VP 1932-33; P 1933-34
J Brown	Chief Committee Clerk, Lanarkshire CC	1936-48
P H Brown	Chief Cashier, Transport Dept, Portsmouth	1946-48
R D Brown	Chief Clerk, Engineer’s Dept, Barking	1943-46
A Buchan	Registrar, Dundee	1921-23, 1926-28
A H Buckely	Principal Administrative Assistant, Education Dept, Bolton	1962-
F J Burgess	Senior Assistant (Salaries and Wages), Finance Dept, North Manchester Hospital Management Committee	1953-54
A S Butcher	Senior Assistant (Establishments), Secretarial Dept, Eastern Electricity Board	1963-65
G C V Cant	Deputy Town Clerk, Stoke-on-Trent	1927-30; 1931-33
G Carter	Chief Committee Clerk, Stockport	1921-30
E A Chapman	Principal Clerk, Education Dept, Glamorgan CC	1927-30
H Charlton	Senior Committee Clerk, Bolton	1949-50
J Chaston	Deputy Clerk – Clerk to the Council, Kettering	1925-45
E C R Chinn	Accountancy Assistant – Salaries Officer, Huddersfield	1948-56
A Clark	Chief Clerk, Engineer and Surveyer’s Dept, Bolton	1939-48
J H Clark	Second Assistant (Rates), Treasurer’s Dept, Wakefield	1937-41
E H Clayton	Superannuation Administrative Officer, Treasurer’s Dept, Gloucestershire CC	1957-
G H Clifford	Assistant, North-Western Electricity Board	1966-
C Cooper	Chief Registration Clerk, Treasurer’s Dept, Sheffield	1920-21
R W Coppock	General Rent and Rates Superintendent, Nottingham	1939-45
F C Corbishley	Chief Clerk, Secretarial Section, Treasurer’s Dept, York	1945-58
H S Corden	Senior Traffic Clerk, Transport Dept, Nottingham	1961-
G W Coster	Clerk to the West Derby Assessment Committee, Liverpool	1930-36; VP 1933-35; P 1935-36
E G Couldrey	Administrative Officer, Glamorgan CC	1959-63
F E Cox	Assistant Chief Relieving Officer – Assistant Area Welfare Officer, London County Council	1936-44
Sir Homewood Crawford	City Solicitor, London	1906-24; VP 1906-08; P 1908-24
G B Credland	Salaries and Superannuation Assistant – Counter Cashier, Treasurer’s Dept, Sheffield	1949-53; 1954-55
R M Creed	Principal Assistant Accountant, Croydon and Kent area, South-Eastern Electricity Board	1958-
E C Crofts	Accountant, Nottingham	1923-27
G H Crossley	Deputy Borough Treasurer. Huddersfield	1914-19
Miss M W Curtin	Matron, Moxley Hospital, Wednesbury	1947-; VP 1964-66; P 1966-67
J Darricotte	Headmaster – Supervisor of Schools, Bolton	1907-27; VP 1924-27
J F Davidson	County Medical Officer of Health, Somerset CC	1939-43
W Davidson	Engineer’s Dept, Hull	1919
E R Davies	Deputy Clerk of the Council, Berkshire CC	1939-45; 1946-51; VP 1949-51
T Davies	Deputy Accountant, Bedwellty UDC	1924-25
Miss E Dawson	Senior Clerk, Education Dept, Leeds	1938-45; 1946-49
A B Day	Surveyor of Buildings. Education Dept, Nottingham	1935-43
V A Day	Research Officer, Town Planning Office, Oxford	1950-
E P Debenham	Town Clerk, St Albans	1918-19
J M Delves	Clerk of the Council, Tenterden RDC	1948-49
A H Dimmock	Chief Clerk, Treasurer’s Dept, Fulham	1918-25
G Dixon	Commercial Manager (Barrow-in-Furness) North-Western Gas Board	1950-51
W O Dodd	Deputy Town Clerk – Town Clerk, Brighton	1939-48; HS 1960
R F Donnelly	Inspector of Weights and Measures, Kilmarnock	1945-46
Miss J A Downton	Chief Librarian, Preston	1948-49
N Dracup	Accountancy Assistant, Treasurer’s Dept, Bradford	1941-43
H Duckworth	Sectional Senior Clerk – Senior Administrative Assistant, Highways and Bridges Dept, West Riding CC	1958-
A E Dumbrell	Chief Cashier – Assistant County Treasurer, East Sussex CC	1950-61
S Duncan	County Publicity Officer, Lancashire CC	1948-67; VP 1963-65; P 1965-66
F Eade	Cashier – Arrears Officer, South-Eastern Gas Board	1958-65
A J Eagles	Senior Accountancy Assistant, St Helier Group Hospital Management Committee	1953-55
J W S Edmonds	Second-Class Clerk – Accountancy Officer, Port of London Authority	1944-65; Tr 1957-65
G Endsor	Engineering Draughtsman, Engineer’s Dept, Nottingham	1918-20
P W English	Deputy Chief – Chief Public Health Inspector, Ilford	1951-63; Tr 1961-63
E G Euinton	Chief Assistant (Rating and Income), Treasurer’s Dept, Luton	1954-60; 1961-63; 1964-
C B Evans	Chief Clerk, Housing Management Dept, Birmingham	1950-54
R Evans	Rating and Valuation Officer – Clerk to the Council, Blackwell RDC	1945-63; VP 1959-61; P 1961-62
R L Evans	First Class Clerk, Warwickshire CC	1945-48
R M Evans	Chief Cost Clerk, Highways Dept, Gloucester CC	1954-56
J Y Fawcett	Chief Cashier, South Shields	1941-60; Tr 1953-60
T Fernley	Collector, North-Western Gas Board, Manchester Group	1956-66
F R Finch	Principal Assistant, Education Dept – Deputy Director of Education, Willesden	1924-36
L R Finnimore	Administrative Assistant, Exeter	1956-57
A E Fitton	District Public Health Inspector, Blackpool	1949-62
Mrs G Franks	Head Inspector of Maternal and Child Welfare, Health Dept, Sheffield	1925-35
G S Fraser	Writer, Town Clerk’s Dept, Glasgow – Town Clerk, Aberdeen	1924-25; HS 1927-43
J H Fraser	Senior Audit Assistant, Leeds	1966-
T Freeman	Chief Accountant, Treasurer’s Dept, Manchester	1927-41; Tr 1937-41
D Galbraith	Chief Cashier – Depute Chamberlain, Paisley	1947-60; Tr 1960-61
A Gallon	Secretary and Chief Clerk, Engineer’s Dept, Newcastle upon Tyne	1948-53
J J Gardner	Senior Administrative Assistant, Town Clerk’s Dept, Stepney – Chief Officer, Public Control Dept, Tower Hamlets	1955-57; 1959-
A S Garnett	Clerk-in-Charge – Supplies Officer, Engineer and Surveyor’s Dept, Liverpool	1946-49
A A Garrard OBE	Assistant Secretary to the Education Committee, East Ham	1925-30; 1934-44; VP 1941-44; P 1944-45
Miss F L Gates	School Nurse, Reading	1945-46
J E Gee	Chief Clerk, Health and Housing Dept – Principal Clerk, Health Dept, Lancashire CC	1919-20; 1930-36
W P Gilligan	Chief Staffing and Statistical Assistant, Treasurer’s Dept, Devonshire CC	1951-61
Miss E E Goodchild	Personal Secretary, Education Dept, Hampshire CC	1965-
F W Goodchild	Director of Social Welfare, Ipswich	1947-49
A J Gould	Chief Clerk of Rhondda and Pontypridd Guardians’ Committee, Glamorgan CC	1936-41
V Grainger	Senior Clerk, Treasurer’s Dept, Newcastle upon Tyne	1932-41
R S Gray	Administrative Assistant, Treasurer’s Dept – Town Clerk’s Dept, Norwich	1952-
G R Greenway	Senior Clerk, Stapleton Gasworks, Bristol	1963
Miss C Greedus	Clerk, Electricity Dept, Walthamstow	1947-48
Miss M G G Gregory	Branch Librarian, Sheffield	1956-65
D L Griffiths	Town Clerk, Aldershot	1927-45
Miss A Guest	Borough Librarian, Barnsley	1951-56
H C T Hailes	Chief Clerk, Roads and Bridges Dept, Dorset CC	1959-
D L Harbottle	Town Clerk, Blackpool	1918-19
W D Harris	Chief Costing Assistant, Treasurer’s Dept, Southend-on-Sea	1966-
W J Harris	Administrative Officer, Health Dept, Glamorgan CC	1951-59
F H Harrod CBE	Director of Education, Coventry	1939-46; VP 1943-45; P 1945-46
P H Harrold OBE	Town Clerk, Hampstead	1932-58; HS 1932-56; VP 1946-48; P 1948-49 and 1955-56
Dr Irene C Hastilow	Deputy Medical Officer of Health, Rowley Regis	1948-49
R F Henderson	Commercial Clerk – Assistant (Commercial Clerical), Merseyside and North Wales Electricity Board	1951-52; 1953-55; 1955-60
B W Heptinstall	Senior Clerk, Bournemouth and Poole Electricity Supply Co	1948-49
A H Heron	Clerk, County Clerk’s Dept, Durham CC	1956-
R E Heron	Chief Clerk, Education Dept – Deputy Director of Education, Sunderland	1936-50
L W G Hetherington	Superintendent, Electricity Consumers, Wimbledon – District Commercial Engineer, London Electricity Board, SW Sub-area	1948- , VP 1961-63; P 1963-64
A B Hill	Chief Clerk, Children’s Dept, Brighton	1966-
R W E Hill	Administrative Assistant – Senior Administrative Assistant, Health Dept, Surrey CC	1957-
J L Holland	Secretary for Education, Northampton CC	1936-44; VP 1936-38; P 1938-39
C C Holt	Chief Clerk and Cashier, North-Eastern Gas Board	1963-
G Horscroft	Chief Clerk/Labour Officer, Southwark ‘A’ Power Station, British Electricity Authority	1949-50
J Horsfall	District Inspector of Weights and Measures, Wolverhampton	1960-66
W E Hudson	District Clerk (Dagenham), Essex Education Committee	1938-44
S A Hughes	Principal Clerk, Lewisham	1944-45
M Humphrey	Clerk and Solicitor, Felixstowe	1920-30
Miss D Humphreys	Non-Medical Supervisor of Midwives, Leeds	1952-54
N Hurd	Rating Officer, Manchester	1950-54
A F Hutt	Librarian, College of Technology, Manchester	1948-49
T J Hutton	Chief Assistant, Town Clerk’s Office, Marylebone – Assistant Town Clerk, Westminster	1955-59; 1960-
J G Iles	Town Clerk, Newport (Mon)	HS 1950-66; VP 1965-
R W Iley	Technical Officer, Maintenance of Appliances and Public Lightin, Northern Gas Board, Sunderland	1953-55
A M Imrie	Inspector of Weights and Measures, Dundee	1931-34
A Jack	Clerk, Transport Dept, Glasgow	1965-
L R Jenkins	Chief Costs Assistant, County Surveyopr’s Dept, Buckinghamshire CC	1951-55; 1958-64
B T Jennings	Borough Treasurer, East Ham (later Newham)	HT 1961-
J G Jester	District Public Assistance Officer, Birmingham	1948-49
H W John	Senior Clerical Officer, Engineer’s Dept, Cardiff – Establishment Officer, British Electricity Authority (South Wales Division)	1944-53
Sir Arthur P Johnson	(knighted 1932). Town Clerk, Hampstead	1907-32; HS 1907-10; NEC Chairman 1910-32; VP 1918-24; P 1924-31
Dr G P Johnson	Medical Officer of Health, Stoke-on-Trent	1919-22
R G Johnson	City Treasurer, Sheffield	1910-19; Tr 1918-27
E E Jones	Technical Assistant, Northumberland CC	1965-
H Jones	Committee Clerk – Senior Administrative Assistant, Cheshire CC	1963-65; 1966-
H R Jones	Senior Accountancy Assistant, Wolverhampton	1941-60; Tr 1953-60
K W Jones	Senior Committee Clerk, Monmouthshire CC	1957-
H Jordan	Chief Assistant, Accountant’s Dept, Glamorgan CC	1919-23; Tr 1919-28
H Joyce	Superannuation Officer, Lincoln	1943-47
J Joyce	Clerical Assistant – Administrative Assistant, City Engineer’s Dept, Edinburgh	1961-
F H Jupe	Chief Clerk, Education Dept, Hampshire CC	1951-53
H A Jury	Clerk – Costing Assistant, Wimbledon	1939-43; 1948049
A E Kay	Adminstrative Assistant, Clerk’s Dept, Essex CC	1949-55
T J Du’B Keefe	Chief Costing Assistant, Surveyor’s Dept, Nottinghamshire CC	1954-
A E Kell	Assistant Chief Clerk, Electricity Dept, Bristol – Deputy Chief Clerk, South-Western Electricity Board, Bristol and North Somerset Sub-Area	1948-49
W Kenyon	Chief Administrative Assistant, Parks and Gardens Department, Liverpool	196-62
J A Kershaw	Principal Officer, City Treasurer, Bradford	1965
A F Kidson	Town Clerk, Folkestone	HS, 1910-29
G A Knowles	Chief Food Inspector, Sheffield	1956-66
L G Lambe	Accounts Assistant, Education Dept, Croydon	1948-49
G Lawson	Chief Clerk, Sanitary Dept, Edinburgh	1934-35
W Chambers Leete	Town Clerk, Kensington	1913-20
W H Legh-Smith	City Treasurer, Liverpool	HT 1937-43
Mrs L E Lewis	Section Clerk in charge of Branch Clinic, Health Dept, Ipswich	1953-56
T W Lewis	Assistant Overseer, Barry	1918-19; 1923-24
J Lewthwaite	Assistant Overseer, Leeds	1921-22
G Llewellyn	Chief Clerk, Treasurer’s Dept, Monmouthshire CC	1930-51; Tr 1941-51
W E Lloyd	Borough Treasurer, Hampstead	HT 1925-37; VP 1934-36; P 1936-37
H Long	Public Health Inspector, Leeds	1960-67
S Lord	Treasurer, Acton UDC – Acton Borough	1910-54; HT 1918-24; Tr 1927-39; VP 1924-31; P 1931-32; Chairman, Logomia 1933-54
F B Lunt	Town Clerk’s Dept, Liverpool	1925-31
C F Lythall	Chief Clerk, Surveyor’s Dept, Leicester	1910-19
M O McAuliffe	Assistant Secretary, Bristol Education Committee	1921-35
J B McCann	First Class (A) Assistant, Public Health Dept – Senior Assistant, Clerk of the Council’s Department, London County Council	1947-58
J M McElroy	General Manager, Tramways Dept, Manchester	1914-18
K J McFadyen	Senior Audit Assistant, Treasurer’s Dept, West Sussex CC	1965-
R McGill	County Clerk, Moray and Nairn CC	HS 1943-49
N McLean	Clerk – Supervisor, Citay Chamberlain’s Dept – Assistant City Collector, Glasgow	1949-
T E Madigan	Deputy Superintendent Registrar, Plymouth	1961
F Magill	Assistant Secretary/Accountant, Estates Dept, Birmingham	1964-
F R Mann	Divisional Officer for Education, West Riding CC	1945-46
F Marsden	Deputy City Engineer and Surveyor, Bradford	1909-33; VP 1922-32; P 1932-33
G C Martin	Income Tax Officer, City Treasurer’s Dept, Birmingham	1948-49
T W Maslen	Audit Assistant, Coventry	1945-48
E H Mason	Assistant Traffic Superintendent – Deputy General Manager and Traffic Superintendent, Transport Dept, Manchester	1937-48
H Mather	Chief Cashier – Assistant Accountant, Waterworks Dept, Manchester	1950-56
W A Mayne	Landscape Gardener, Basildon New Town	1965-
J A Meek	Senior Assistant (Administration), Town Clerk’s Dept – Education Dept, Liverpool	1963-
F V Merriman	Chief Education Officer, Reading	1935-39
J F Miller	County Clerk, Dunbarton CC	HS 1964-
J M Miller	Chief Legal Assistant, Ayr CC	1964-
A B Mills	Director of Education, Swinton and Pendlebury	1941-43
P Mitchell	First-Class Clerk, Northumberland CC	1920-24
Miss H M Monaghan	Burgh Assessor and Registration Officer, Clydebank – Senior Assistant, Assessor’s Dept, Dunbarton CC	1951-59; 1960-65
J E Morgan	Group Secretary, West Wiltshire Hospital Management Committee	1961-
P D Morgan	Clerk, Education Dept, Birmingham	1963; 1965-
R Morgan	Deputy Group Secretary, Dartford Hospital Management Committee	1954-66; Tr 1965-66
H Morris	Chief Clerk for Higher Education, Swansea	1935-36
Sir G Parker Morris	Town Clerk, Westminster	HS 1929-32
J W Moss	Education Secretary, Wycombe – Divisional Education Officer, Buckingham CC	1945-50
R A Reay Nadin	Town Clerk, Sutton Coldfield	1909-19
W K Nattrass	District Inspector of Weights and Measures, Dorset CC	1954-59
C J Newman	Town Clerk, Exeter	1945-54; VP 1945-47; P 1947-58
T Nolan	Clerk, Electricity Dept, Leeds – Accountant, No 4 (Leeds) Sub-Area, Yorkshire Electricity Board	1935-60; Tr 1948-52; VP 1951-53; P 1953-54
H Norton	Assistant Claims Superintendent, Transport Dept, Sheffield	1943-44
A E Nortrop	Deputy Director of Education, Luton	1944- ; VP 1956-58; P 1958-59
F N Nunn	Superintendent Social Welfare Officer, Portsmouth	1948-49
R G Oakley	Senior Accountancy Assistant, Birmingham	1957-63
A E Odell	Committee Clerk, Southwark – Deputy Town Clerk, Poplar	1943-63; VP 1954-57; P 1957-58
A Denton Ogden	Chief Sanitary Inspector, Chelmsford RDC	1935-47
D J Osborne	Deputy Town Clerk, Barnsley	1943-44
A J Packer	Assistant Divisional Education Officer, Kent CC	1949-53
L H Palmer	Senior Records Clerk, Southern Electricity Board, Portsmouth	1949-51
C B Parkin	Section Head (Administration), Southern Division, Central Electricity Authority, Portsmouth	1955-58
D J Parry CBE	Solicitor – clerk to Glamorgan CC	HS 1933-50; VP 1944-46; P 1946-47
C H Patterson	Borough Treasurer, West Ham	1921-25; HT 1924-25
J Penny	Chief Clerk, City Assessor’s Dept – City Assessor, Surveyor of Rating and Registration, Dundee	1945-53
J Pepper	Senior Committee Clerk, Nottingham – Establishment Officer, East Midland Electricity Board	1943-58; Tr 1948-53; VOP 1953-56; P 1956-57
Sir Tom Percival	Clerk, Central Northumberland Assessment Committee	1930-33; VP 1932-33
G J Phillips	Senior Public Health Inspector, Neath	1963-
G W Phillips	Superintendent, School Attendance and Bylaws Dept, Walthamstow	1943-47
J P Phoenix	Information Officer, Liverpool	1948-55
A Pinches	Chief Clerk, Electricity Accounts – Chief Rate Collector, Croydon	1925-48; Tr 1941-48
W Pitt-Steele	Secretary, Aldersbrook Homes and Hospital, Wanstead	1944-51
Miss F E Pole	Secretary to General Manager, Transport Dept, Sheffield – Home Help Organiser, Leicester	1948-
H G Pope	City Assessor, Aberdeen	1923-24; 1937-39
F V Powell	Borough Engineer and Surveyor, Blackburn	1955-66; Tr 1963-66
W H Pullinger	Rate Collector, Poplar	1912-24
E Ratcliffe	Chief Clerk, Education Dept, Keighley	1921-25
C R M Reed	Senior Internal Audit Assistant, City Treasury, Bristol	1965-
R S Reeve	Local Welfare Officer – Senior Welfare Officer, Norfolk CC	1956-61
J C Rennie	Town Clerk, Aberdeen	HS 1949-64
S W E Richards	Clerk (Accountancy), East Midlands Gas Board (Leicester)	1953-54
T F Richardson	Administrative Assistant, Public Health Dept, Edinburh	1957-58
E L Riley	Chief Clerk, Veterinary Dept – Establishment Officer, Liverpool	1935-59; VP 1948-50; P 1950-51
R Riley	Deputy Chief Public Health Inspector, Manchester	1955-64
C A W Roberts OBE	Manager, Walton Hospital, Liverpool	1930-44; VP 1939-43; P 1943-44
E Robins	Deputy Town Clerk, Leicester	1939-43
C S Robinson	Town Clerk, Blackburn	1936-38
J H Robinson	City Treasurer, Leeds	HT 1946-52
A R Roddick	Administrative Officer, Central Tuberculosis and Hospital Admissions Dept, Glasgow	1958-59; 1963-64; 1965-
R J Roddis	Town Clerk, Penrhyn	1943-44
P P Rosenfeld	Engineering Assistant, Ilford	1948-50
D Ross-Johnson	General Manager, Bristol Docks	1915-20
J H Rothwell	Town Clerk, Chesterfield	1921-23
W Rowlands	Chief Finance Officer – Treasurer, Rhyl UDC	1943-53; Tr 1951-53
L E Rumsey	Clerk of the Council, Leicester CC	1936-39
John Ruscoe	Treasurer of the City, Bradford	HT 1952-61
H Russell	Chief Clerk, Gas Dept, Stockport – District Service Manager, Stockport Undertakings, North-Western Gas Board	1938-53; Tr 1952-53
R H Russell	Establishment Officer, Kingston Group Hospital Management Committee – Senior Administrative Officer, SW Metropolitan Regional Hospital Board	1957-58; 1959 –
P Saunders	Town Clerk, Halifax	1918-19
C E Savage	Internal Audit Assistant, Kingston-upon-Hull	1954-58
E H Scarlett	Committee Clerk, Norwich	1930-36
H N Schrader	Chief Welfare Officer, Wolverhampton	1949-57
Miss I Seiller	Senior Accounts Clerk, South-Eastern Gas Board	1958-59
S E Shallice	Senior Traffic Assistant – Senior Administrative Assistant, Transport Dept, Manchester	1955-56; 1965-
F Sharpe	Chief Clerk, Electricity Dept, Oldham	1939-46
F W Shww	Sub-Area Accountant (Mid-Sussex), South-Eastern Electricity Board	1953-58
T G Shaw	First-Class Clerk, Durham CC	1920-21; 1922-23
R T Shears	Senior Officer, Clerk’s Dept, Devon CC – Clerk to North Devon Water Board	1938-51
R A Siddons	Finance Officer, Education Dept, Leicester CC	1947-48
Miss C Simms	Insurance Officer, Treasurer’s Dept, Stretford	1953-57; 1958-61; 1962-
J W Singleton	Borough Librarian, Accrington	1923-39
L G Sirett	Senior Accountancy Assistant, Hendon	1949-53
C A Smallman MBE	Senior Welfare Officer, Birmingham	1949- ; VP 1962-64; P 1964-65
A Smith	Chief Statistical Officer – Chief Administrative Officer, Treasurer’s Dept, Sheffield	1948-55
H W Smith	Senior Clerk, Kent CC	1939-39
T E Smith	District Rating Officer, Birmingham	1954-55
R E Sopwith	Senior Inspector of Schools, Sheffield	1937-39
T Spence	Rating Clerk – Deputy County Collector, Dunbarton CC	1939-45; 1952-63
Miss I Stansfield	Administrative Officer, Education Dept, Manchester	1935-45
E J Stead	County Surveyor, Somerset CC	1935-43; VP 1937-39; P 1939-43
A Lindsay Stewart	Deputy Town Clerk, Edinburgh	1959-61
T Stewart	Chief Accountant, Inverness CC	1948-52; 1953-55
G A Stone	Local Taxation Officer – Controller and Licence Officer, Worcester CC	1933-41
J H Stone	Assistant Overseer and Collector, Newcastle upon Tyne	1925-32
A L Strachan	Schoomaster, Plymouth	1910-27
H R L Strawbridge	Distribution Engineer, Tendring Hundred Waterworks Co	1960-66
W Strother	Borough Engineer and Surveyor, Bethnal Green	1941-60; VP 1951-52; P 1952-53
H Sutherland	Meter Reading Section, Scottish Gas Board	1965-
H Taylor	Deputy Town Clerk, Stoke-on-Trent	1936-45
L H Taylor	First Committee Clerk – Chief Administrative Assistant, Town Clerk’s Dept, Salford	1937-56; VP 1952-54; P 1954-55
F B Tempest	Chief Internal Auditor, West Bromwich	1947-48
A Harrison Thomas	Court of Passage, Liverpool	1906-23
D F Thorne	Chief Clerk and Accountant, City Engineer’s Dept, Cardiff	1919-20
W Threlfall	Chief Librarian, Stretford	1943-46
Miss M Townson	Assistant-in-Charge, Welfare and Records, Passenger Transport Dept, Liverpool	1948-63
R G Trollope	Chief Clerk, Parks Dept, Swansea	1950-57
Dr G Clark Trotter	Medical Officer of Health, Paisley	1918-19
J H Tyrrell	Deputy Public Assistant Officer, Lancashire CC	1938-48
J S Underwood	Chief Internal Audit Clerk, Blackpool	1943-50
E J Varley	Chief Clerk, Education Dept, Gateshead	1954- ; Tr 1965- ; VP 1966-
Miss F M A Vaughan	Superintendent Radiographer, Accident and Orthopaedic X-Ray Dept, The London Hospital	1963-
W E Veasey	Borough Treasurer, West Bromwich	1943-47
J W Vince	Clerk, Education Committee, Durham CC	1935-42
Capt W J Wade	Superintendent of Markets, Manchester	1908-22; Tr 1919-21
T S Wailes	Chief Revenue Assistant, Treasurer’s Dept, Darlington	1960-64
A Walker	City Assessor, Glasgow	HS 1920-25
R E Walker	Chief Clerk, Peterborough District, Eastern Electricity Board	1956-57; 1960-66
R Walls	Cashier, Town Clerk’s Office, Edinburgh	1920-21; 1928-31
T Wallwark	Assistant Electrical Engineer, Blackburn	1919-20
B J Walpole	Chief Clerk, Clerk’s Dept, Yorkshire Ouse and Hull River Authority	1949-50; 1958-65
J H Warren	Clerk to the Council, Newton-in-Makerfield UDC – Town Clerk, Slough	1935-46
T H Waterhouse	Legal Adviser, Birmingham Regional Hospital Board	1964-
A Webb	Reference Librarian, Brighton	1932-36
R B Webb	Establishment Officer, Westminster	1948-53
S C Wellington	Administrative Clerk-in-Charge, School Health Services, West Sussex CC	1947-49
W Whalley	Senior Administrative Assistant, Education Dept, Lancashire CC	1959-
W H Whinnerah	Senior Clerk – Secretary, Highways Dept, Manchester	1919-37; Tr 1928-37
G A White	Deputy Senior Clerk, Eastern Electricity Board, Northmet Sub-area, Chingford	1949
S Whitehead	Borough Treasurer, Hammersmith	HT 1943-46
E G Whitney	First-Class Clerk, Port of London Authority	1935-37
J W S Wilkinson	Chief Clerk, Clerk’s Dept – Deputy Town Clerk, Southport	1919-38
F J Willett	Chief Clerk, Higher Education Dept, Salford	1909-37
F J Williamson	Chief Administrative Assistant, Education Dept, Swansea	1962-
Rhys Williams	Deputy Accountant, Gellygaer	1939-44
L T G Wilmshurst	Entertainments and Publicity Manager, Southampton	1963-
W Wilson	Chief Public Assistance Officer, Fife CC	1935-37
H Winter	Hospital Secretary and Superintendent, Fairfield General Hospital, Bury and Rossendale Hospital Management Committee	1957-
G Wolfenden	Sectional Chief Clerk, Education Dept, West Riding CC	1926-29
C A W Wood	Deputy County Accountant, Staffordshire CC	1924-27
Miss L H Wooldridge	Inspector of Health Visitors and Midwives, Staffordshire CC	1935-37
L Worden	Deputy Town Clerk, Smethwick – Town Cl;erk, Hendon	1922-24; 1935-43
Dr A Wotherspoon	Medical Officer of Health, Stoke-on-Trent	1930-35; VP 1933-34; P 1934-35
G D Wright	Acting Borough Accountant, Darlington	1908-19
W J Wynn	Principal Assistant Architect, County Architect’s Dept, Surrey CC	1950-54
R Yarwood	Clerk, Water Dept, Stockport	1954-58
W W Yeates	Deputy City Librarian, Plymouth	1949-54
L C St Leger Yeend	Clerk to the Council, Sodbury RDC	1944-48
E Young	Administrative Assistant, Leeds (Broup B) Hospital Management Committee	1950-51
E A S Young	Assistant Director of Education, Willesden	1937-51; VP 1947-49; P 1949-50
J Young	Administrative Assistant, County Clerk’s Dept, Kent CC	1943-47
Before 1918, NALGO’s National Executive Council was composed of representatives of all the affiliated guilds and professional societies, each of which sent one or more delegates to its meetings. Since these often changed from meeting to meeting, it is impracticable to list them. The list therefore begins in 1918, when the NEC was first elected by members in district constituencies – save that, where a member elected after 1918 regularly attended before then, the date of his first attendance is given. Key: P – President; VP – Vice President; HT – Honorary Treasurer; Tr – Trustee; HS – Honorary Solicitor