Following the 1919 Royal Commission for Coal, the Mining Industry Act, 1920, was passed and under Section 20 a levy of 1d per ton of output was placed upon all coal owners for a period of five years. The first contribution was made in March 1921. A Miners’ Welfare Fund was established and administered by a Central Committee. The objects of the fund were defined by the Act as such purposes connected with the social wellbeing, recreation, and conditions of living of workers in or about coal mines, and with mining education and research as the Board of Trade may approve. The provision of facilities for recreation would cover such objects as workmen’s institutes, reading rooms and public libraries, swimming baths, playing fields of all kinds, gymnasia, allotments, vegetable and flower shows, and so on. Schemes were to be submitted by district committees consisting of representatives of the owners and management of coal mines, and an equal number of representatives of workmen. For these purposes the districts in Stirlingshire and West Lothian were included in the jurisdiction of the Lanarkshire Miners’ Welfare Association. The grants of money were, as a rule, for capital rather than revenue purposes and any maintenance and oncosts were expected to be the responsibility of the local committees. The grants would cover most of the capital costs, but some local fundraising would be required. Improvements to housing were not included in the scheme.
It took time to set up the district committees and to assess the amount due to each area – this latter was dependent upon local output and in a way acted as an incentive to greater production. The miners of Kinneil were amongst the first to get their act together and sent in an application for a scheme for a workmen’s institute with a bowling green in March 1922. The Callendar Miners’ Welfare were not far behind and in January 1923 received word that it was to be awarded a grant of about £1,000 to erect a hall, with a billiard room and a ladies’ room at Glen Village.
Mining communities in rural area were initially prioritised in order to provide meeting rooms for those in the vicinity of the pits as these were the places with little other social infrastructure. This had unfortunate consequences when the pits closed and depopulation resulted, causing the cessation of the local welfare institutes. The schemes were very varied but by far the most popular was the erection of a hall to accommodate around 250 people, with a kitchen, games room and reading room attached. Many also had outdoor recreational facilities, particularly bowling greens and tennis courts. The buildings were designed by specified architects based in the regions. These were mostly in the Airdrie/Coatbridge area. The halls were generally of brick and render of the bungalow or single-storey type reflecting the tastes of the 1920s. For those receiving much smaller grants, wooden hutments were available. The games rooms were, as often as not, equipped with a billiard table, that provided a great fillip to the makers of these items. Caretakers were appointed to take care of the buildings and to act as greenkeepers.
| PLACE | GRID REF. | TYPE (Original) | GRANT | OPENING DATE |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Airth | NS 8985 8768 | Hall | £1,900 | 28 November 1930 |
| Avonbridge | NS 9116 7283 | Hall | £1,000 | 26 August 1926 |
| Banknock | NS 78- 79- | Hall | 1924 | |
| Blackbraes | NS 9066 7552 | Hall | £2,500 | 4 December 1925 |
| Bothkennar | NS 9085 8308 | Hall | £ 800 | 19 February1926 |
| Carriden & Bridgeness | NT 0130 8140 | Hall, bowling green, tennis courts | 24 May 1924 | |
| Carronhall (Carronshore) | NS 8952 8329 | Hall | £2,000 | 1 July 1926 |
| Dennyloanhead | NS 8007 7959 | Hall | 3 October 1925 | |
| Glen Village | NS 8850 7828 | Hall | £1,000 | Summer 1924 |
| Kinneil | NS 9887 8192 | Hall | £2,400 | 1923 |
| Letham | NS 8963 8590 | Small Hall | £ 600 | 1925 |
| Limerigg | NS 8563 7067 | Small Hall | 11 December 1925 | |
| Maddiston (Craigend) | NS 9388 7680 | Hall, bowling green, golf course, district nurse | 13 May 1924 | |
| Shieldhill | NS 8973 7680 | Hall | £2,050 | 26 December 1925 |
| Slamannan | NS 8568 7307 | Hall | ||
| Standburn | NS 9273 7473; NS 9271 7438 | Hall & Baths | November 1925 | |
| Whitecross | NS 9678 7673 | Small Hall | 6 August 1937 |
The uses made of the halls were innumerable. Most were social – Burns suppers, Christmas parties, whist drives, bazaars, dances, weddings, carnivals, coronation celebrations and the like. Recreational activities included indoor billiards, pool, table bowls, skittlepool, dominoes, chess, whist, and so on. When it became popular, Badminton was introduced in 1938 at the Bothkennar hall. The Miners’ Welfare Societies also had some of the first cinemas in the area; that at Standburn opened on 11 December 1926. All were well patronised, particularly by children. The reading rooms were generally for the older men and were well supplied with newspapers. An essential for them was the presence of a warming coal fire. Semi-official uses of the institutes included baby clinics, the distribution of free milk to mothers and babies, and meetings of all kinds. During the Second World War they were used to distribute items such as ration books, gas masks, and so on. Many were designated as rest centres where the population would take refuge after bombing.
Carronhall Miners’ Welfare Institute was particularly active in arranging events in its hall and saw a huge number of people pass through its doors. The whist drives were particularly well attended and there were always queues for the two billiard tables. The committee there was quite astute in its publicity and in 1927 it received visits from two gentlemen of note. One was the Marquis of Clydesdale, son of the Duke of Hamilton, who had gained fame as an amateur boxer, and the other was Captain O’Kelly, from the Mines Department, London.
Competition in sports and games was encouraged and teams from each of the institutes were quickly established. Leagues were set up so that they could play each other for the honour of it – and for donated trophies. The football teams played the village teams and joined the local football associations. Craigend (Maddiston) Miners’ Welfare had a quoiting club and in April 1927 affiliated to the Scottish Association. Such connections gave them access to training and to touring professionals.
A number of the miners’ institutes were originally constructed with a small number of individual baths and showers for its members to use. They were seen as a great boon in districts where the housing conditions, for the most part, fell well short of modern requirements. This aspect of the schemes quickly fell into disuse.
The amount of money raised for the welfare of the miners depended directly upon the output of coal and that awarded to local halls was related to the produce of the local pits. The capital grants were backed up from voluntary deductions from the miners’ wages for the upkeep and maintenance of the institutes. This meant that when strikes occurred the income was much reduced and the communities suffered.
During a prolonged strike in 1926 the kitchen at the Longcroft and Banknock Welfare Institute provided two meals a day. The food was varied with tea, fish, and dumpling as one example. A dance was held in the Picture Palace, and a whist drive was held in the Banknock Miners’ Institute, in aid of the kitchen funds.
There was often a misunderstanding surrounding the ownership of the halls built under the Miners’ Welfare Scheme. Most of the publicity and hype indicated that they had been built for the local communities using a levy raised on the output of the local pits, and that they were “handed over” to the newly established local Welfare Societies for running. As the scheme was originally only to last for five years it was clear that any central control would lapse. This was a little misleading as the Central Welfare Committee retained ownership of the buildings but left the local committees with the responsibility for the maintenance.
The educational side of the original act was not ignored and scholarships were provided to young men from the area to learn the latest coal mining techniques. After discussion with the Stirlingshire Education Authority a rural library was installed in the Maddiston Institute in August 1926 and within a week had 70 members. Then, in April 1930 the County Technical Institute for Mining was opened in Park Street, Falkirk, by William Adamson MP, Secretary of State for Scotland. A large amount of the money needed to prepare the building came from the Miners’ Welfare Central Committee.
In 1926 a new Mines Act was passed extending the levy scheme for another five years with the spending focus shifting to the provision of playing fields for the younger audience. The Act of 1926 also tapped into a new source of revenue – “a royalties welfare levy” which was made on superiors of 1s per £1. Here the focus was the creation of pithead baths. One of the first to be opened under this scheme in Scotland was at Motherwell in November 1928. Sir Adam Nimmo spoke at the opening ceremony and said that the coalowners “realised that when the Miners’ Welfare Fund came into being there was set in motion a great humanising stream which had been flowing on, bringing increasing comfort, education and amelioration to the various mining communities.” Much had been achieved in a short space of time.
Playground equipment was provided by the Shieldhill Miners’ Welfare Society in 1932 to assist the No. 2 Eastern District Council at its new playground adjacent to the Institute there. The following year a grant of £175 was also given for playground equipment to a group improving the grounds around the Wallace Monument. That group was providing all of the labour required for the work on a voluntary basis. A similar sum was given for playing fields at the old Brightons Quarry and in a new park in California. The Craigend Miners’ Welfare Society handed over its children’s corner to the Eastern No. 3 District Council in April 1934, free of debt. The Council then had to renew the lease of the ground which was with Carron Company – the maximum period that it allowed was 21 years.
| PARK | GRANT | WELFARE SOCIETY & RECEIVING BODY | OPENING DATE |
|---|---|---|---|
| Shieldhill Park | Playground equipment – £175 | Shieldhill MWS/No. 2 EDC | October 1932 |
| Wallace Monument | Playground equipment – £175 | Shieldhill MWS/ Community group | September 1933 |
| Brightons Quarry (Laurie Park) | Playground equipment – £175 | Craigend MWS. No. 2 EDC | September 1933 |
| Maddiston Children’s Corner | Playground & equipment | Craigend MWS/ No. 3 EDC | April 1934 |
| California Park | Playground equipment – £175 | Blackbraes MWS/No 2 EDC | August 1934 |
| Laurieston Park | Playground equipment, cycle track & a shelter – £175 | /EDC | October 1934 |
| Reddingmuirhead Park | Playground & equipment | Redding MWS/No. 2 EDC | Early 1936 |
| Glen Village | Playground & equipment | Callendar MWS/No. 2 EDC | Late 1936 |
| Gairdoch Park, Carronshore | Playground & equipment (£252) | Carronhall MWS/ Larbert EDC | December 1937 |
However, it was not just strikes that caused long-term problems for the coal industry. Foreign competition was undercutting the British industry and pits began to run down. That in turn reflected upon the ability of the local miners’ welfare institutes to keep going. In July 1929 arrangements were made between the Ministry of Labour and the Miners Welfare Committee, whereby the local miners and other unemployed persons belonging to Haggs. Longcroft, and Dennyloanhead, were able to sign the register at Dennyloanhead Miners Welfare, instead of going to Bonnybridge Labour Exchange. The income of the local institutes had been much reduced and in April 1930 a letter was received by the Stirlingshire Education Authority from the secretary of the Banknock and Dennyloanhead Welfare Society stating that it had, with the Central Welfare Committee, decided to dispose of the Banknock Institute, and inquiring if the Authority would purchase the same. As additional accommodation was not required at Banknock School, no offer was made. The building was sold off. One by one each of the other institutes in the area was affected. It was 1950 before the Slamannan premises were put up for sale. Owing to the reduced number of workers in Craigend Colliery, and the consequent effect in depleting the funds of the Craigend Welfare Society it decided in 1934 to quit its own nursing service and, with the help of the public, a “Muiravonside Nursing Association” was set up similar to that established in other areas. Money was raised by collectors going door to door.
The local Welfare Institutes were also occasionally hit by the policies of the County Council. In the early 1930s it ramped up its programme of declaring substandard dwellings as unfit for human habitation and having them demolished. Despite the fact that it was vehemently pointed out that it was ripping apart established communities by replacing them with housing elsewhere, it stuck to building the new dwelling near to the supplies of water and electricity rather than extending those services. The ratepayers of Blackbraes and California were the first to realise the implications and in May 1931 sent a petition to the Council to protest against the extensive demolition of houses in those areas which would isolate two modern schools and the Blackbraes Miners’ Welfare Institute built at a cost of over £2,500. Their protests were to no avail.
It was 1933 before the Standburn Institute realised that it might be subjected to a similar situation. Then, in January 1934 a public inquiry, ordered by the Department of Health, was opened in the reading-room of the Standburn Miners’ Welfare Hall, conducted Mr R. H. Maconochie, K.C. That May it was announced that 131 of the 150 houses were to be removed. Standburn village was not just gutted but well nigh eradicated.
The Falkirk area had done well out of the Miners’ Welfare Fund and in the New Year’s honours list for 1935 Robert James Prince, the miners’ welfare organiser for Central Scotland, was made a Member of the British Empire.
One of the last structures to be erected in the Falkirk area under the Welfare Scheme was the pit-head baths at No. 3 Pit (Woodyett) in Denny owned by Robert Addie & Sons (Collieries) Ltd. The new baths cost in the region of £12,000 and were quite modern, incorporating the latest improvements. It was opened on Saturday 17 December 1938 by D J Barr, managing director of Wilsons and Clyde Coal Co Ltd. An inscription on a mural tablet in the entrance hall read: “Miners’ Welfare Fund, Herbertshire Pithead Baths. These Baths erected by the Miners’ Welfare Committee in pursuance of the Mining Industry Act of 1926 were opened and handed over to the Trustees on 7th January 1939.” J A Dempster was the architect and the building included a canteen,. John McDonald of Duke Street was appointed as the baths superintendent.
Inventory of Miners’ Welfare Institutes
- Airth
- Avonbridge
- Banknock
- Blackbraes
- Bothkennar
- Carriden & Bridgeness
- Carronhall
- Craigend (see Maddiston)
- Dennyloanhead
- Glen Village
- Kinneil
- Letham
- Limerigg
- Maddiston (Craigend)
- Redford (see Standburn)
- Shieldhill
- Slamannan
- Standburn
- Whitecross
Sites and Monuments Records
| Airth Miners’ Welfare Institute | SMR 2322 | |
| Avonbridge Miners’ Welfare Institute | SMR 2323 | |
| Bothkennar Miners’ Welfare Hall | SMR 2121 | |
| Bridgeness Miners’ Welfare Hall | SMR 2118 | |
| Carronhall Miners’ Welfare Institute | SMR 2321 | |
| Dennyloanhead Miners’ Welfare Institute | SMR 2319 | |
| Kinneil Miners’ Welfare Institute | SMR 2325 | |
| Letham Miners’ Welfare Hall | SMR 2122 | |
| Maddiston (Craigend) Miners’ Welfare Society | SMR 2324 | |
| Shieldhill Miners’ Welfare Hall | SMR 2267 | |
| Standburn Gothenburg | SMR 2072 |
Bibliography
| Bailey, G.B. | 2008 | Hard as Nails: the Home Guard in Falkirk District. |
| Thomson, F. | 1984 | Pits, Pints and Poverty: an account of the village of Standburn. |
| Waugh, J. | 1977 | Slamannan Parish through the Changing Years. |
| And material from the pages of the Falkirk Herald. |
Falkirk Local History Society 