Women’s Institute

Our Group

Marton cum Grafton WI was formed in 1924. It plays a very important role in the village, helping members to meet and make friends by joining in our monthly meetings and attending WI Federation events at the local headquarters in Ripon and various other venues.

We currently have over 55 members from Marton cum Grafton and the surrounding villages and our ages span from 30’s to 80’s, which makes us a diverse and lively group. We warmly welcome new members and make sure they are introduced and included. We all know how hard it can be to walk into a group like this for the first time, so rest assured we are mindful of this and very friendly.

Marton cum Grafton WI is part of the North Yorkshire West Federation of Women’s Institutes and the National Federation of Women’s Institutes.

Meetings

We have 11 meetings per year, which take place in the Village Hall at 7.30 pm on the second Thursday of every month (except August). Following a brief business meeting, we enjoy listening to a speaker, watching a demonstration or having a go at something crafty. Then we enjoy socialising over a light supper and a drink – sometimes a cuppa, sometimes a glass of wine or something soft. Traditionally we have an outing in June, a garden picnic in July and a Christmas meal in December. If you would like to come and sample a meeting before deciding if you would like to commit to becoming a member, please email to: martoncumgraftonwi@gmail.com.

Programme

We try to organise a wide variety of interesting speakers, demonstrations and crafty activities for our monthly meetings. Recent annual outings have included visits to Dunesford Vineyard, Jennyruth Workshops near Ripon, and a fish & chip supper cruise down the River Ouse. We also enjoy a sparkling Christmas party, and arrange WI fundraising events including a very popular tea and cake cafe at the annual village Open Gardens Day in June, and our annual village coffee morning in November.

Our current programme can be viewed below. Occasionally last-minute changes have to be made when a speaker is unable to attend due to illness or bad weather.

Contacts

Susan Caygill, McG WI President and Alison Povall, McG WI Secretary can be contacted on: martoncumgraftonwi@gmail.com.