How is a women's forum organised?

The key officer of the local women’s organisation is the constituency women’s officer. She is responsible for co-ordinating the women’s forum in the constituency and is, ex-officio, the chair/co-ordinator of this group. The forum can also appoint officers to help carry out the work of the forum. These might not just be secretary, treasurer etc, but might include training officer, community liaison officer etc.

All individual women members in the constituency are deemed to be members of the women’s forum. The women’s officer should be provided with a membership list by the constituency secretary, so she can make contact with women members. All women members should be mailed at least annually to inform them about activities or meetings of the forum.

The normal route for communication with women members is through articles or inserts in general constituency and branch mailings, and your CLP should support and co-operate in this activity, as well as making resources available to the forum, to enable it to do its work.

The women’s forum may hold whatever informal or formal meetings or gatherings it sees fit to work towards meeting its aims.

Women’s forums are encouraged to work on joint activities and projects across constituency boundaries, and may form joint women’s forums. These might, for example, cover an entire local authority area. Such groups do not have formal status in respect of any particular CLP.

Women in individual branches may also meet together informally to work towards the aims of the women’s organisation. Women’s groups at branch level do not have the same formal status as constituency women’s forums.