Conservative Women's Organisation
The Conservative Women's Organisation (CWO) represents the female members of the Conservative Party in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland. The Scottish Conservative Women's Council is the autonomous sister organisation of the CWO in Scotland. The Chairman of the British Section of the European Union of Women also sits on the CWO National Executive. The youth wing of Conservative Women's Organisation is called Conservative Young Women. As with all political parties, membership has declined and the CWO had about 5,000 active members in 2012 (although all the women members of the party are actually  members). Attendance at the CWO Annual Conference has been between 300 and 750 in the past five years. It also sends delegates to the National Conservative Convention, the parliament of the party's voluntary wing (Voluntary Party). History. The National Union of Conservative and Unionist Associations' Central Women's Advisory Committee (CWAC) was formed in 1908 and officially founded in 1919, although not affiliated to the Conservative Party until 1928. Its roots go back to the Grand Ladies Council of the Primrose League of 1885. It changed its name to the Women's National Advisory Committee (WNAC) in 1951 and  again to the Conservative Women's National Committee (CWNC) in April 1982. It changed to its current title in April 2007. In the latter half of the 20th century, the CWO had more than a quarter of a million members and became the largest women's political organisation in the Western world. For several decades, the women's organisation's annual conference was regularly held in the Royal Albert Hall in London. The CWO celebrated its centenary in 2019 at its conference at Methodist Hall in London on 9 March 2019. The organisation created a supplementary centenary logo, which includes  a primrose, in reference to its roots in the Primrose League - and uses the suffragette colours of purple, white and green. Purpose. According to its website, the CWO is: Organisation. National Executive. The CWO Executive Committee has responsibility for the overall management of the organisation and is composed of: National Officers. The National Officers for 2019/2020 are: Each of the 12 regions are broken into Areas (roughly by county), with each having their own Area Chairman with responsibility to the Regional Chairmen. An affiliated (or recognised) Conservative Association women's group, known as Association CWOs or Conservative Women's Constituency  Committees (CWCCs). Affiliation and constitution. The organisation is officially affiliated to the Conservative Party. Its last constitution was ratified by the CWO AGM in March 2007 and ratified by the Party Board on 7 April 2007. A revised constitution was ratified by the CWO AGM on 29 March 2014 and ratified by the Party Board on 28 April 2014. Elections. National and Regional elections take place at Annual General Meetings before 30 April each year. Policy and research. CWO Forums. Although the organisation primarily represents the views of the women grassroots members of the Conservative Party, it is also involved  in policy and research, which particularly affect women in the UK. It does this primarily through its CWO Forums - panel based discussion meetings that are generally held in the Palace of Westminster and which are open to men and women, and to people from all political persuasions. Subjects covered in the last 5 years include: CWO Development. Set up by the then Chairman, Pauline Lucas, in 2010, the development programme trains and mentors women to stand for public office at all levels. Workshops are usually held at the Conservative Campaign Headquarters in London but sponsored "Be a Councillor" days are  held around the UK. Workshops cover communication, interviews, applications, campaigns and finance, together with other "transferable skills". In July 2013, the CWO announced a new workshop as an introduction for women to apply for Public Appointments and Non-Executive Director roles. Conferences. The first recorded Conservative Women's Conference was in 1921 and holding an annual conference is part of its constitution. For several decades, the women's organisation's annual conference was regularly held in the Royal Albert Hall.