| Description | Contains reports, correspondence, papers, newsletters, and finance ledgers, relating to the administration and governance of the YHA at a national level. Includes records from both the Youth Hostels Trust and the Youth Hostels Association (England and Wales), to 1993, and from 1993 relating to the Youth Hostels Association (England and Wales) (known as the Association), and the YHA (England and Wales) Ltd (known as the Company). Also includes records relating to YHA Services Ltd, and to the YHA Adventure Shops plc.
The majority of the records consist of meeting minutes and papers from the National Council, national committees, and later the Board of Directors. These records can principally be found in YHA/NG/2 (to 1991) and YHA/NG/3 (from 1991), and relate to all aspects of the national governance of YHA, including: hostel management, facilities, and standards; property matters; membership; educational provision; fundraising and finances; strategic planning and policy; countryside management and advocacy; countryside leisure pursuits; staffing and wardens, including terms and conditions of employment; work with other like minded organisations and youth hostel associations elsewhere; and work with regional groups and representatives.
The series also includes records relating to: the history of the YHA; finances and sales; hostel statistics; wardens, staff and volunteers; and membership.
Records relating to YHA Services Limited, including minutes of meetings and legal papers, can be found in YHA/NG/7/7. |
| Arrangement | The records are arranged in the following series:
YHA/NG/1: Youth Hostels Trust governance and administrative records
YHA/NG/2: Youth Hostels Association (England and Wales) council and committee minutes and papers
YHA/NG/3: Board, council, and committee minutes and meeting papers, from 1990
YHA/NG/4: Attendance and signature books, and registers of members
YHA/NG/5: National Constitutions
YHA/NG/6: Mixed governance and administrative reports, correspondence, and papers
YHA/NG/7: Topical governance and administrative reports, correspondence, and papers
YHA/NG/8: General and retrospective histories
YHA/NG/9: Finance ledgers
YHA/NG/10: National and hostel statistics
YHA/NG/11: Wardens, staff, and volunteers
YHA/NG/12: Membership records |
| Administrative History | The Youth Hostels Association (YHA) was established in 1930, with the national organisation overseeing the regional groups who were responsible for acquiring and running hostels in their own regions.
The YHA expanded rapidly in the first few years of operation, with individuals on the national or regional councils often incurring a personal liability for the purchase of property and running costs. In response to this, and in order to establish the YHA on a more professional footing which could gain funding from other national bodies, the YHA established the Youth Hostels Trust in 1933. This was an independent trust with limited liability able to purchase and hold hostel properties, and receive funding and bequests, on behalf of the YHA and regional groups. Properties could then be licenced to regional groups and be run under their management.
A limited company, YHA Services Limited, was also later established in order to oversee particular business interests, with a focus on the sale of hostelling equipment. This became YHA Adventure Shops plc. in 1990, with operations wound up in 2004.
This arrangement, with YHA responsible for the organisation, national decisions, and issues such as membership, education, and hostel standards, and the Youth Hostels Trust responsible for the legal management of properties and bequests, continued until an organisational restructure in 1993.
In 1993, the YHA became an incorporated company and the relationship between the YHA and the Youth Hostels Trust changed. All business and property transactions were transferred to the Youth Hostels Trust, which became renamed YHA (England and Wales) Limited (known within YHA as 'The Company'), while voluntary aspects of the organisation, oversight of the regional groups, hostel running and standards, and countryside management issues remained with the Youth Hostels Association (England and Wales) (known within YHA as 'The Association').
This continued until c 2004 when the two organisations were merged under the management of the YHA Limited Board of Directors. |