The Women’s Institute is democratic and member-led, and the resolutions process is unique in putting members at the heart of decisions about our campaign activity. Every issue that we campaign on stems directly from a resolution put forward by members and adopted at the Annual Meeting. WI members have a unique opportunity to turn a concern into a national campaign every year, backed by the whole of the WI.
A resolution is a call for change on a current issue in society. Once a resolution has been adopted at the Annual Meeting, the Public Affairs Department turns it into a campaign. Through national and local campaigning, members play a key role in achieving change on important issues.
2024 / 2025 Resolution Short list
Let’s Talk about incontinence
It is estimated that 14 million people in the UK of all ages are suffering from bladder problems and a further 6.5 million with bowel problems. However, it is still a subject that is misunderstood and very hard to talk about. We call upon the UK Secretary of State for Health and Social Care and Wales’ Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Care to examine in detail all areas of health and wellbeing that are affected by incontinence issues. We call for the government to commit to an up-to-date audit to provide a national picture of incontinence care, offering a baseline from which to drive improved services. We call upon the members of the WI to raise public awareness, remove the stigma around incontinence, to help reduce the significant impact on people’s lives.
Bystanders can be lifesavers
There are over 30,000 out-of-hospital cardiac arrests a year in the UK, and less than one in ten people survive. Women have a lower chance of surviving than men. Early cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and defibrillating can more than double the chances of survival. We call on WI members to work together to increase public confidence and training in the delivery of CPR and to work with local organisations to help improve access to defibrillators in their communities to give every person the best chance of surviving a cardiac arrest.Join the repair revolution
There is a huge excess in clothing production which has devastating consequences for the environment. The WI calls on the UK Government to join the repair revolution and strengthen the law and investment to support a circular economy of clothing and fabrics in the UK, where repair and reuse are achievable, accessible, and affordable to all. We also call on WI members to promote clothing reuse and repair in their communities.Eliminate landfill of medication packaging
Medication packaging, due to its complexity, is not routinely recyclable through local authority collections, usually leading to disposal in landfills. We call on the WI to proactively raise awareness by encouraging additional collection points where empty packaging can be easily returned for recycling. Furthermore, we call on manufacturing companies to acknowledge their moral responsibility to reduce their environmental impact by exploring simpler packaging alternatives that are easier to recycle or have less impact on the environment. These steps can significantly improve recycling rates to move towards eliminating landfill.
WI Resolutions
The Women’s Institute is democratic and member-led, and the resolutions process is unique in putting members at the heart of decisions about our campaign activity. Every issue that we campaign on stems directly from a resolution put forward by members and adopted at the Annual Meeting. WI members have a unique opportunity to turn a concern into a national campaign every year, backed by the whole of the WI.
A resolution is a call for change on a current issue in society. Once a resolution has been adopted at the Annual Meeting, the Public Affairs Department turns it into a campaign. Through national and local campaigning, members play a key role in achieving change on important issues.
2023-24 Resolution Shortlist
1. Dental Health Matters
There is a chronic shortage of NHS Dentists and people are suffering health issues as a result. The NFWI calls on the Government to increase investment in the training and retention of dentists and to review the current inadequate NHS contracts in order to ensure everyone can access an NHS dentist wherever they live.
2. Impacts of poor housing conditions
Poor housing can have a deleterious effect on human health and wellbeing, safety and quality of life and can disproportionately affect the most vulnerable groups in society.
The NFWI calls on the UK Government to boost housing standards and regulations, increase funding for housing renovations, increase the supply of affordable and secure housing and strengthen collaboration with local authorities, housing associations and other relevant stakeholders to develop strategies that address local housing challenges.
3. Say ‘no’ to gambling advertising
Harm caused by excessive gambling is a global problem. Some countries are already addressing this by banning advertising. The NFWI calls on members, the government, regulators, the NHS, educationalists and gambling charities to work together towards achieving a complete ban on gambling advertising. This will reduce gambling harm, save the NHS money, protect family relationships and decrease the number of suicides, around 400 per annum at present.
4. Improving Outcomes for Women in the Criminal Justice System
There is an urgent need to radically reform decision making in respect of women in the criminal justice system and in particular, pregnant women and women with children. We urge cross government collaboration to the deliver on the 2018 female offender strategy by setting goals, robust governance and performance measures to reduce the number of women who have committed non-violent offences from being imprisoned.
Learn more about past WI campaigns and resolutions here
Just a few links below of the many campaigns