Bevin Boys

Shortfall in UK coal output , it was in decline again by the time war broke out in September 1939. which also reduced output. In response, the government increased the minimum weekly pay to 83 shillings (for those over the age of 21 working underground) In late summer, a bonus scheme was proposed to reward workers in mines that exceeded their output targets. These measures resulted in an increase in production in the second half of 1942, although the total amount produced was still short of the tonnage required. Absenteeism (miners taking time off work as a result of e.g. sickness) also rose through the war from 9.65% in December 1941 to 10.79% and 14.40% in the Decembers of 1942 and 1943 respectively. By October 1943, Britain was becoming desperate for a continued supply of coal, both for the industrial war effort and for domestic heating throughout the winter. Appeals for volunteers On 23 June 1941, Bevin made a broadcast appeal to former miners, asking them to volunteer to return to the pits, with an aim of increasing numbers of mineworkers by 50,000. He also issued a 'standstill' order, to prevent more miners being called up to serve in the armed forces. On 12 November 1943, Bevin made a radio broadcast aimed at sixth-form boys, to encourage them to volunteer to work in the mines when they registered for National Service. He promised the students that, like those serving in the armed forces, they would be eligible for the government's further education scheme. The term 'Bevin Boys' is thought to originate from this broadcast. Conscription On 12 October 1943, Gwilym Lloyd George, Minister of Fuel and Power, announced in the House of Commons that some conscripts would be directed to the mines. On 2 December, Ernest Bevin explained the scheme in more detail in parliament, announcing his intention to draft 30,000 men aged 18 to 25 by 30 April 1944. From 1943 to 1945, one out of every ten young men called up was sent to work in the mines. This caused a great deal of upset, as many young men wanted to join the fighting forces and felt that as miners, their contributions would not be valued. The first Bevin Boys began work, having completed their training, on 14 February 1944. ==Programme==

Selection of conscripts To make the process random, one of Bevin's secretaries each week, from 14 December 1943, pulled a digit from a hat containing all ten digits, 0–9, and all men liable for call-up that week whose National Service registration number ended in that digit were directed to work in the mines, with the exception of any selected for highly skilled war work such as flying planes and in submarines, and men found physically unfit for mining. Conscripted miners came from many different trades and professions, from desk work to heavy manual labour, and included some who might otherwise have become commissioned officers. An appeals process was set up, to allow conscripts the opportunity to challenge the decision to send them to the pits, although decisions were rarely overturned. Those who refused to serve in the mines were imprisoned. By 31 May 1944, 285 conscripts had refused to serve as miners, of whom 135 had been prosecuted and 32 had been given a prison sentence. By the end of November 1944, out of a total of 16,000 conscripts, 143 had refused to serve in the mines and had been sent to prison, some with the imposition of hard labour. Training at Ollerton, Nottinghamshire, in February 1945 Boys of nearly 18 years old received an official postcard instructing them in five days time to report to a training centre, such as at Cresswell Colliery, Derbyshire. Bevin Boys with no previous experience of mining were given six weeks' training (four in a classroom-type setting and two at their assigned colliery). Some 140 went on strike in Doncaster for two days before their training had finished. There were also complaints from experienced miners, who resented the fact that a 21-year-old recruit received the same minimum wage as they did. Bevin Boys did not wear uniforms or badges, but the oldest clothes they could find. Being of military age and without uniform caused many to be stopped by police and questioned about avoiding call-up. Contemporary attitudes to Bevin Boys Many Bevin Boys suffered taunts as they wore no uniform, and there were accusations by some people that they were deliberately avoiding military conscription. Since a number of conscientious objectors were sent to work down the mines as an alternative to military service (under a system wholly separate from the Bevin Boy programme), there was sometimes an assumption that Bevin Boys were "Conchies". The right to conscientiously object to military service for philosophical or religious reasons was recognised in conscription legislation, as it had been in WWI. Old attitudes prevailed amongst some members of the general public, with resentment by association towards Bevin Boys. In 1943 Ernest Bevin said in Parliament: ==End of programme==

The final conscription ballot took place in May 1945 (shortly before VE Day); however, the final conscripts were not released from service until March 1948. ==Recognition of contribution to the war effort==

Within a few months of the first Bevin Boys starting work, there were calls for a badge to be awarded in recognition of the importance of their national service. After the war, Bevin Boys received neither medals nor the right to return to the jobs they had previously held, The role played by Bevin Boys in Britain's war effort was not fully recognised until 1995, 50 years after VE Day, when Queen Elizabeth II mentioned them in a speech. On 20 June 2007, prime minister Tony Blair informed the House of Commons that thousands of conscripts who had worked in mines during World War II would be awarded a veteran's badge similar to the HM Armed Forces badge awarded by the Ministry of Defence. The first badges were awarded on 25 March 2008 by prime minister Gordon Brown, at a reception in 10 Downing Street, marking the 60th anniversary of the discharge of the last Bevin Boys. In 2010, Tom Hickman's ''"Called Up Sent Down": The Bevin Boys' War'' was published, containing accounts of around 70 of the boys sent to the coal mines. On Tuesday 7 May 2013, a memorial to the Bevin Boys, based on the Bevin Boys Badge, was unveiled by the Countess of Wessex at the National Memorial Arboretum at Alrewas, Staffordshire. The memorial was designed by former Bevin Boy Harry Parkes; it is made of four stone plinths carved from grey Kilkenny stone from Ireland. The stone should turn black over time, to resemble the coal that the miners extracted. ==Notable Bevin Boys==

• Peter Archer, lawyer and Labour Party politician • Stanley Bailey, senior police officer • Stanley Baxter, actor and impressionist • John Comer, actor • John Etty, rugby league footballer • Geoffrey Finsberg, Conservative politician • Roy Grantham, trade union leader • Paul Hamlyn, founder of the Hamlyn group of publishers and Music for Pleasure record label • Frank Haynes, miner, and later Labour MP for Ashfield • Wally Holmes, rugby union player • Nat Lofthouse, footballer • Dickson Mabon, Labour politician • David McClure, artist • Tom McGuinness, artist • Eric Morecambe, comedian • Kenneth Partridge, interior designer • Jock Purdon, folk singer/poet • Peter Alan Rayner, numismatic author • Brian Rix, actor/manager, and President of Mencap • Jimmy Savile, television presenter and child sex abuser • Peter Shaffer, dramatist • Alf Sherwood, footballer • Gerald Smithson, cricketer ==Bevin Boys Association==

The Bevin Boys Association was formed in 1989 with 32 members in the Midlands area. By 2009 the membership had grown to over 1,800 from all over the UK and overseas. The association continued to hold meetings and reunions as well as attending commemoration services. Its Web site said that it holds an AGM and social Zoom meetings. ==In popular culture==

Douglas Livingstone's radio play, Road to Durham, is a fictional account of two former Bevin Boys, now in their eighties, as they visit the Durham Miners' Gala. British musician Jez Lowe wrote the song "The Sea and the Deep Blue Devil" from the perspective of a Bevin Boy who loses his girlfriend to a Royal Navy recruit. English singer-songwriter Reg Meuross wrote a song called "The Bevin Boys (Bill Pettinger's Lament)". The song was commissioned by Martin Pettinger as a tribute to his Bevin Boy father, Bill. ==See also==