In
May 1952, Mr. John Marsh, then the Director of Industrial
Welfare Society United Kingdom (IWS) had an idea, the possibility
of holding a Commonwealth and Empire Conference on some human
problems of industry. He put the idea to HRH The Duke of Edinburgh,
the Patron of the Industrial Welfare Society, who, after taking
advice, agreed to sponsor it provided that it followed certain
guide lines which Prince Philip suggested in writing as follows
-
If it is intended primarily to benefit those
taking part I think you ought to consider a title which starts
something like this "A conference to study the problem
of........... This ought to avoid the implications that it
ought to produce its findings as resolutions or suggestions.
(July 1952)
Thus, the first Conference was organised
and took place at OXFORD United Kingdom from the 9th to 27th
July, 1956. The Conference was organised and financed by the
Government, Employers, Unions and individuals who formed a
Conference Council. The programme of the Conference included
a wide range of human problems of industrial communities excluding
the questions of wage and working conditions which are normally
dealt with by industrial negotiations. Prince Philip suggested
that the Conference should include study tours. (study tours
became very much part of subsequent Conferences). Since the
1956 Conference, every six years a study conference has been
held either in Canada, Australia or United Kingdom.
Prince Philip was invited to assume the Presidency
of the 1956 Conference which HRH graciously did.
Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, sent the
following message to the participants of the first conference.
"I send my best wishes to all members
of your Conference assembled at Oxford I hope their efforts
will be lasting benefit to all industrial communities throughout
the Commonwealth and Empire."
After the 1956 Conference, all subsequent
Conferences have been named after Prince Philip and known
as HRH The Duke of Edinburgh's Commonwealth Study Conference.
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