Prior to 1923, groups of ladies with Rotary Club connections across the country were meeting to support those less fortunate than themselves as, at that time, social care and support were negligible in society. In 1926 these groups formed a countrywide organisation and named it Inner Wheel to acknowledge the Rotary connection.

Today, the Association of Inner Wheel Clubs is like a wedding cake with tiers – a large grass roots Club level, present in most towns, with corresponding Rotary Clubs, a District level comprising 29 Districts with 19,000 members, corresponding with the Rotary Districts and the GB&I Association representing all corners of Great Britain and Ireland.

The fourth tier is International Inner Wheel, which represents more than 100,000 members from all the Inner Wheel Clubs in 103 Countries around the world.

The Inner Wheel Club of Saffron Walden meets every first Wednesday evening of the month at The Saffron Hotel. Members share a meal together and then, often, have a visiting speaker.

In the spirit of the three objectives of Inner Wheel Clubs (to promote true friendship, to encourage the ideas of personal service and to foster international understanding), the club also undertakes many activities.

We support local charities, both financially and physically, e.g by providing monthly refreshments as the local Support for Sight coffee mornings, holding fashion shows in collaboration with a local shop and holding, what has become, a very popular annual event - A bridge afternoon tea! 

Internationally we have raised funds for 'School in a Bag' which sends filled backpacks to deprived children in other countries. We have also held a Beetle Drive to support 'Life Straw' a charity that distributes an amazing and cheap device that turns dirty water clean in seconds. 

On the social front members have joined the local 'Colour Dash' run (or in our case walk!), taken part in the Three Counties Walk at Bartlow, visited the Houses of Parliament and spent a lovely day with lunch at The Leaping Hare, Wyken, near Bury St Edmunds.

This is just a small flavour of what we do and we encourage ladies with or without Rotary connections to join us!

If you'd like to know more about us or to come along to one of our meetings to see us and experience what we are all about, please e-mail membership officer Carol Gunthorpe.