Older English churchgoing women as voluntary providers of welfare

The contribution of UK Christian churches to the provision of welfare projects, relying largely on a pool of volunteer labour, has long been recognised by a number of commentators. What is also now recognised is that it is women who have made up and still make up the majority of these volunteers but they are a largely ageing – and declining – population, hence the question arises as to whether most churches in Britain can continue to provide the same levels of support for much longer. This article considers the factors which have made women longstanding and committed individuals in both their churches and their civic communities, and argues that the same conditions do not pertain for their children. Unless more volunteers are forthcoming from secular organisations, we are likely to be seeing a significant gap in voluntary welfare provision at precisely the time when state funding for welfare is being drastically cut and more volunteers are needed, not fewer.