The WI what is your experience

Thar WI sounds much better organised for attracting and maintaining new members Grannytomany. I hope anyone on WI committees reading this take note!

Having seen a few positive mentions of U3A, I feel driven to say that my two attempts to get involved in their groups were a dismal failure. Both attempts were very negative. There was no welcome of any kind apart from leaflets in the post and the website link, the monthly meetings were very un inclusive to newcomers and it was nigh on impossible to join any of my preferred groups because they were full and vacancies only seemed to occur on a dead man’s shoes basis. I tried several social outings but being a solo, felt very solo indeed so gave up.

I’m convinced that it isn’t the national organisation which is either good or bad but the people who run and participate in them at local level which makes or break ones experience. As is the case with everything really.

When I rejoined the WI, I had a couple of initial friendly emails from members of the committee and was invited along to the next meeting as a guest to see what I thought of them. I was met at the door and introduced to several people including two ladies who were also there as ‘looksee’ guests. The three of us were shown to a table with three existing members to break the ice and settle us in. A lot of fun was had that evening and I joined the following month. I think the annual subs of £40 odd pounds is good value. But our is a very informal WI with no ritual as mentioned by someone else and certainly no very expensive addItional activities as we are all aware that purse depths vary.

? wiccanfederation.weebly.com/regional-groups.html

Inner Wheel?
Labia Pride?
Ladies Circle?
Mother's Union?
National Women's Register?
Married Women's Association?

l enjoyed learning the ritual

The Order of Women's Freemasons?

Come on LL what group is it that charges these exorbitant amounts? Ladies golf club?

Which ever group it is, sounds awful.

Ladies Circle? Tangent? Red Hatters?

A Wicca Circle??

Lady Freemasons?

No not Rotary.

Rotary?

When I was younger I didn't want an all-female organisation and dismissed the WI thinking it was for old ’lavender smelling’ oldies.
I eventually joined another ladies only group that's not been mentioned here. It was most welcoming, because they needed young members, and l enjoyed learning the ritual as I was young and my memory was adequate. It is traditional, and has historical routine and I like this but the crawling, to the leaders for advancement is sickening and I'm going to leave for this reason.

Over the 20+ years, my memory is fine but I don't want to learn more ritual. Nor do I want to spend almost £200 membership per year plus raffle tickets at our 5 meetings each year and £30 plus wine per meal at each meeting. We also have formal dances with meals where we can have our husbands and these are about £200 including raffle and food. Of course evening dresses are not cheap.
I'm spending too much on something I'm not enjoying.
The friendship wains as time goes on. I still pay my membership but think it's time to resign.
The younger members are keen to progress but the oldies are stagnant.
I'm disappointed I'm still a member.
Moan over and thank you for listening.

Its put me right off too, reminds me of yoga classes in cowbridge 30 years ago, not one person offered me a welcome, all older women. I am not about to get myself into that sort of situation again. I also found it in north wales when I was just 25 with 2 little ones, they stopped speaking and stared when I went into some shops in ruthin

My wood carving group is the complete opposite, they gave me a huge welcome, perhaps because they were mostly men with skills to share. I have never had that seat thing in that group. Here was me ready to share some of my skills via WI and/or U3A, don`t think I will bother, would rather ride my bike

How sad to see all the negative comments about WIs. I'm president of ours and I like to think we are very welcoming - though we don't get many new members being a small WI in a rural setting. We have interesting speakers and a Christmas lunch in one of our local pubs. Our secretary is very good at sending cards to anyone ill or bereaved and many of our members live near each other. We don't have any of the 'I'm saving a seat' nonsense as everyone knows each other.

I joined the committee as programme secretary and was asked, after 2 years, if I'd consider being president as our then president wanted to step down. I worried about 'treading on the toes' of longer standing members of the committee but it was all fine.

Do give it another go, try a different branch if you can.

I’m not a WI member and I must admit that hearing many of the experiences here on GN, this has put me off! I hate that seat-saving business, as it seems very unwelcoming. I also dislike cliques - reminiscent of the playground. I always think of the film Calendar Girls when the WI is mentioned - talks on the history of the tea towel and 1,001 ways with broccoli! I’m sure that many of the talks are more interesting than this though. Where the WI is concerned, i’ll say “never say never” but I don’t feel as if I want to give it a go just yet, but i’d have to give the WI the benefit of the doubt if I ever wanted to try it. Think i’d prefer U3A.

I'd been thinking maybe I should join some time in the future, definitely not now! I've had the same treatment in art classes and also tried U3A, such a pity.

This certainly puts me off, it just confirms my experience. I went to ours some years ago. The first meeting was OK, but then they had a very boring and long agm. There was a lot of unrest and people talking about each other, quite a few left, it was like a civil war going on.

I joined our U3A and they were warm and friendly, and generally quite young. I suppose what ever the group, give yours a try before dismissing it.

Could anyone tell me if their group has a mixture of people from different ethic minority backgrounds

Someone has mentioned the NHR, Someone mentioned about me joining when I had a small baby. Unfortunately, it was pitched to me along the lines of it's a place where you're not allowed to talk about your children, so I never wanted to go somewhere purporting to be an organisation for women whatever their time of life, where I wasn't allowed to talk about the biggest part of my life at the time. It wasn't an organisation where you went to talk about history, or literature or music, where you'd know you were going to talk about other things, but one you could talk about anything apart from what was the most important part of your life at that time. I'd have wanted to talk about other things most of the time but being not allowed to talk about life as a new mother - didn't appeal. IF they'd meant that it was a place to talk about things other than family life that would have been ok, but not allowed to, completely put me off

Why doesn't someone forward a link to this thread to the WI?

I really hope that someone from WI federation comes across this thread! As I said upthread, I am wavering on whether to return when we are able to, I honestly haven't missed it. Federation need to have a good look at themselves and their rigid, somewhat unhelpful attitude, all we have had during lockdown is directives on what we can't or shouldn't be doing, very little support for the commitee ( I am on it) at all.

there their

I'm probably speaking out of turn because as previously posted, I've never been to a meeting. Only this comes across loud and clear, if members greet a new person with "you can't sit there, that's Ethel's chair" they are straightaway giving a prospective member the impression they aren't really welcome. Just wondering if that is ever put forward by whoever chairs the gatherings. Surely it must occur to anyone, that some people have to muster courage to try and find there way with what is an established body and break the ice. Maybe prospective new attendees could be recently bereaved, lonely, new to an area, but I can imagine with the sort of knock backs discussed on this thread some will not want to persevere. If such women's organisations do want to recruit new members then allowing the "that's Ethel's chair" to continue is counter productive to that. How about a " welcome! come and sit here where Ethel usually parks herself, and talk to me, if she arrives at a later stage, I'll introduce you and then at least you'll have got to know two of us"

I belong to a large WI and yes some members do save the seats etc but almost normal behaviour whatever you join. On the whole our speakers are interesting but of course sometimes you get the odd one who isn't. We have loads of different groups which you can join if you want to. We do sing Jerusalem I thought that was obligatory but we do not charge for tea/coffee. whatever next!! We have kept in touch with those who said please do and respected those who didn't want it. and, we have a group for the older ladies who have played their part and no longer able to attend meetings but are now picked up (once we are able to) and meet for coffee and a catch up