National Registration 1915
The above photograph, taken in the 1920s, is of Newhaven Urban District Council office staff and shows Mr Hooper (surveyor), Mr Mainwood (Clerk) Charlie Hersee and Mr Akehurst (Sanitary Officer). The woman in the photograph (ref. NNHS – A015 050) is un-named. The story that follows involves Mr Akehurst and Mr Mainwood. The quotes in this blog are taken from the East Sussex News 10th September 1915.
Following an initial rush of volunteers at the outbreak of war, voluntary recruitment began to slow down. During 1915 it soon became clear that it would not deliver enough men to meet the army’s needs. However, the government did not know how many men of military age were available or whether the work they were doing on the home front was more important to the war effort. They needed information and to this end National Registration was introduced. It was, however, met with some opposition by those who felt, as it turns out rightly, that this would be the first step towards conscription.
On 15 July 1915, the National Registration Act was passed. This required all the men and women aged between 15 and 65 to fill in a form giving details of their family commitments, occupations and skills. Asking women the same questions about work and skills gave the government an indication of the number of women who could be substituted for the men required at the front.
Registration Day was 15 August 1915 and rather than the forms being completed by the head of the household, as with the census, they were completed by the individuals themselves. For those who struggled with literacy, the forms could be completed by the enumerator, who would collect the form shortly after Registration Day. Residents would then receive a certificate of registration.
At Newhaven, officers of Newhaven UDC were enumerators and delivered and collected the forms. The return rate was good and the East Sussex News reported on 10 September that out of the 25 million forms that were issued nationally, only about a dozen or so had not been completed. Unfortunately, one of them was Mrs Georgina Dawkins of 4 Sussex Place, Newhaven and, on 7 September 1915, Newhaven UDC took their case to the Lewes Petty Sessions. Mrs Dawkins, perhaps unsurprisingly, did not appear and the case was heard in her absence. Mr Wellsted, on behalf of the council, explained that Mrs Dawkins did not give any reason for not filling in the form, other than she ‘had something better to do than look after the Government’. The penalty under the act was a maximum fine of £5 plus £1 a day until the form was completed. Mr Wellsted explained that he was currently asking for a single penalty to give her a chance to complete the form. Mrs Dawkins’ husband was serving at the front as a baker.
In giving evidence, Mr A. Akehurst, the enumerator for Sussex Place, explained that he delivered the registration form on the 11 August and called back to collect it on the 18 August. When he asked Mrs Dawkins for the form she said she did not know ‘where the –––––– thing was’. She had not filled the form in and Mr Akehurst explained that if she failed to do so ‘it could mean trouble’ for her. He called again the next day and offered to help Mrs Dawkins fill in the form. When he asked her the first question (her age) she exclaimed ‘What the –––– has that got to do with you?’ Mr Akehurst explained ‘I tried to reason with her, but without success, and she ended by making that remark to me [a slip of paper was handed to the Magistrates] and slamming the door in my face’. He kept knocking at the door but she refused to answer.
Mr Wellsted explained that when his clerk, Mr C Mainwood, tried to persuade Mrs Dawkins to fill in the form she threatened him with a dustbin lid. She ‘also threated to throw a bucket of water over him, and used even worse language to him than she did to Mr Akehurst’.
The court imposed a fine of £2 with the alternative of 21 days in prison. Mr Wellsted confirmed that he would write to tell her the outcome. One of the Magistrates suggested Mr Wellsted might call on her himself, to which he replied ‘the prospect is not very inviting’. There were no further reports about the matter in the local paper, which suggests Mrs Dawkins finally completed the form.
The results of the National Registration census showed there were around 5.1 million men of military age who had not joined up, 1.5 million of whom were in starred (protected) occupations.
This and many other stories can be found in Newhaven’s Home Front by Jenny Flood, part of the Newhaven’s First World War series.
