Iolanthe is an opera by Gilbert and Sullivan, the composers of the Pirates of Penzance and the Mikado. It is about a fairy who was banished from fairyland for marrying a mortal. When the opera opened at the Savoy Theatre in 1882 it stunned audiences with its special effects, this being the first theatre in the world to have electricity. Perhaps this is why W S Gilbert chose the name for his house at 39 Harrington Gardens in Kensington, London.
We will never know for sure but what we do know is that from 1958 - 1983 Iolanthe House became the home of the Central Midwives Board, the organisation responsible for the practice and education of midwives. Closure of the Central Midwives Board in 1983 meant that there was no further need for Iolanthe House.
The government of the time decided that the lease should be sold and the proceeds given to a charity. As a result, The Iolanthe Midwifery Trust was set up. A formal declaration was signed on 16 June 1983 by the Central Midwives Board and the Trustees, and the Trust was registered as a charity on 20 June 1983.
The founders of the Iolanthe Midwifery Trust were forward thinking and believed that they could promote and improve the care of mothers, babies and families through awarding grants and fellowships in support of midwifery education, practice and research. Since 1983, the Trust has done just that.
Money from the sale of the lease and a subsequent substantial legacy provide an annual income for the Trust. This income enables the Trust to award annual grants and bursaries to midwives and others concerned with maternity care, whilst the capital remains invested to ensure the future of the Charity.
The Iolanthe Midwifery Trust over 40 years
This section is a work in progress, based on the review of Iolanthe's paper archives. We welcome any additional information or corrections.
The Iolanthe Trust has benefitted greatly from the involvement of a great number of talented and visionary Trustees over more than 40 years.
Previous Chairs have included Mars Lord, Dr Jacque Gerrard MBE, Sheena Byrom OBE, Jennifer Sleep, Sally Marchant, and Helen Cheyne,
Previous Trustees have included Benash Nazmeen, Johanna Rhys Davies, Phoebe Pallotti, Julie Wray, Sheena Byrom, Mary Stewart, Mary Ross-Davie, Miranda Dodwell, Ruth Deery, Billie Hunter, Sue Eardley, Gillian Brasse, Vanora Huntley, James Brooks, Celina Eves, Miranda Dodwell, Mary Stewart, Alexander Fyfe, Jean Davies, Richard Donaldson, Edith Hillan, Sally Marchant, James Watt, Ruth Ashton OBE, Jean Davies, Jennifer Sleep, Helen Cheyne, Sheila Hunt, Luke Zander, Celina Eves, Nina Hopkinson, Shelagh Smith, Rachel Carmichael, Robyn Phillips, Joe Lederman
Former Executive Directors have included Susan Soar, Miranda Scanlon, and Elizabeth Duff.
Past Awards no longer offered include the Elizabeth Duff Award, the Dame Rosalind Paget Award, the Tricia Anderson Award, the Ann Stewart Award, and the British Hospital for Mothers and Babies (BHMB) Award, for advancing breastfeeding in the community.
In its early days, the Trust hosted an Annual Luncheon. In 1995, when Lady Mancroft was Iolanthe's Patron, this was held at the House of Lords, with a tour of the Palace of Westminster led by Lord Mancroft as a perk of attending. Later, the Trust experimented with moving to hosting midwifery conferences instead, and for many years held the Biannual Sandy Fyfe Memorial Lecture, which commenced in 1999 and became the Sandy and Mollie Fyfe Memorial Lecture in 2013.
Previous Award Winners
2014
Student Awards
Anne O'Loghlen, Olivia Armshaw, Emily Maclean, Amanda Gill, Judith Elwood, Emma Barton, Helen Quinn, Hannah Smith, Margaret Reid, Julia Clark, Emma Pennington, Alison Rodgers, Maureen Wahedi, Faye Callaghan, Georgina Evans
Midwives Awards
Debbia Garrod, Lowri Hansford, Emma Matthews, Annabel Jay, Susan Roberts, Shawn Walker, Jan Stosiek, Leanne Rutkowski, Tessa Snelgar, Helena White, Kathryn Humpherson, Elizabeth Treasure, Adele Roberts
Jean Davies Award: Laura Abbot
Ann Stewart Award: Paulina Sporek
2011
Midwives Awards
Alison Cooke, Deirdre Thajam, Ellie Jenkins, Jill Blakey, Lucy Jepson (also received the Dame Rosalind Paget Award)
Student Awards
Antigone Claustres, Rebecca Rogers, Catrin Mattison, Michelle Beacock, Carleen Jones, Nathalie Barnetche
Ann Steward Award
Laura Mundy
Tricia Anderson Award
Rachel Beckett
2010
Midwives Awards
Rajshree Seewoosurran, Allison Farnworth, Joselle Wright, Jude Davis (also received Ann Stewart Award)
Student Awards
Laura Bridle, Louise Randall, Dawn Barrowclough, Carrie Shutt, Alison Norris
Dame Roslind Paget Award
Anna Brown
Tricia Anderson Award
Alison Taylor
2009
Midwives Awards
Cathy Ashwin, Teresa Kelly
Student Awards
Debbie Anderson, Rona Shrestha, Anna Kent
Ann Stewart Award
Katy McIntosh
Dame Rosalind Paget Award
Lee-Anne Harvey
2008
Midwives Awards
Iolanda Serci, Elsa Montgomery, Joanna Mead (also received Ann Stewart Award), Gill Perks (also received Dame Rosalind Paget Award)
Student Awards
Catherine Ricklesford, Lauren Chandler, Victoria Clarke, Wendy Hicks, Adele Phillips, Angela Nixon, Christine Dunn, Susan Jonathan
Midwifery Research Fellowship
Julie Wray
2006
Midwives Education Bursaries
Jessica Read, Maria Healy, Angela Kerrigan, Christine Birrell, Sonia Cumming, Helen James (also given the Ann Steward Award), Christine Manning (also given the Rosalind Paget Award)
Student Bursaries
Katherine Palles, Helen Boulton, Claire Dack, Louise Wolsey, Claire Baty, Susan Pollard, Louise Bardon
2005
Midwives Education Bursaries
Katherine Allen - Professional Licentiate Diploma Course in Acupuncture (also given the Rosalind Paget Award)
Alex Baxter - MSc in Advanced Clinical Practice (also given the Ann Stewart Award)
Jillian Pride - MSc in Advancing Practice
Susan Gibb - presenting paper at the ICM Conference in Brisbane
Anne Marie Rennie - presenting paper at the ICM Conference in Brisbane
Student Bursaries
Suzie McFadzen - Elective Placement with Caledonia Youth Project
Carrie McIntosh - Elective Placement in New Zealand
Suzanne Finlayson - Elective Placement in Toronto, Canada
Denise Moncur - Elective Placement at Albany Practice, London
Claire Kennard - Elective Placement in Addis Adaba, Ethiopia
Jill Anstee - Elective Placement in Winnipeg, Canada
2004
Midwives Education Bursaries
Aishah Bibi
Laura Abbott (also given Ann Stewart Award) - Masters in Midwifery Science
Bernadette Earley - Course in Holistic Physiology in Pregnancy, Labour and Birth
Helen Blunn - Masters in Clinical Leadership
Hazel Woodcock - International Board of Lactation Consultants Examination
Rosalind Weston - Masters in Midwifery
Andrew Yelland - Diploma in Counselling
Student Bursaries
Sarah New - Elective placement in Sweden at the KarolinskaInstitutet
Gabrielle Holmes - Elective placement at The Farm, USA
Elizabeth Woolfenden - Elective placement at The Farm, USA
Elizabeth Nocton - Elective placement at The Farm, USA
Louise Wilkinson - Elective placement at The Farm, USA
Christine Kalimurti (also given the Rosalind Paget Award)
2003
Midwives Education Bursaries
Sima Hay - Masters in Midwifery
Esther Culpin - Masters in Midwifery
Jane Forbes - Masters in Health and Social Care
Susan Clarke
Elaine Kirkham - Certificate in Counselling Skills
Julia Robson
Joy Kemp (also given Ann Stewart Award) - Masters in Advancing Midwifery Practice
Student Bursaries
Natalie Mottershead - Elective Placement at The Birth Centre, London
Lynn Manning - Elective placement at The Farm, USA
Hayley Wright - Elective placement in Tamil Nadu, India
Elizabeth Wright - Elective placement at Royal Shrewsbury Hospital
Barbara Wickert - Elective placement at St James' Hospital, Leeds
Joanne Watts - Elective placement at The Farm, USA
Patricia Cummings - Elective placement at Johannesburg Hospital, South Africa
Anna Byrom - Elective placement at Christian Medical Hospital, Ludhiana, India
2002
Midwives Education Bursaries
Jill Rawcliffe, Jane West, Debbie Gowers, Augustine Alexander, Elizabeth Crawford
General Awards
Trudy Stevens, Heather Finlay
Student Bursaries
Angela Kerrigan, Sally Montes, Charlotte Taitt
BHMB Award
Rosalind White (also given the Ann Steward Award)
2001
Midwives Education Bursaries
Helen Cheyne - PhD: Women's Health After Childbirth (also given the Ann Stewart Award)
Kathryn Gutteridge - MSc Counselling and Pyschotherapy at the University of Central England, Birmingham
Cindy Horan - Masters of Midwifery at the University of Glasgow
Elaine Lee - MSc in Midwifery at Napier University, Edinburgh
Veronica McArthur - Masters of Midwifery at the University of Glasgow
Amanda Mansford
Student Bursary
Kylie Wallace - Elective Midwifery Placement in the Netherlands
BHIMB Awards
The Abingdon Peer Support Project at the John Radcliffe NHS Hospital Trust
The Albany Midwifery Practice
Midwifery Research Fellowship
Jill Sanghera - Postnatal back pain: the effect of an exercise regime
2000
Education Bursaries
Linda Mackenzie and Natasha Thorpe
General Awards
Sadie Geraghty, Rachel Reed, Rosalind Holland (also given the Ann Steward Award)
The BHMB and Innovations in Care Awards were not given this year
1999
Education Bursaries and General Awards
Jane Prendgergast - BA (Hons) Healthcare Practice
Aileen Morris - MSc by Research
Sally Stewart - MSc in Health Sciences
Teresa Kemp - BSc in Health and Social Science
Lindsay Reid - Research Studies towards a PhD
Elizabeth Sayers - Health Care Elective to Maua Methodist Hospital, Kenya
BHIMB Award: Alison Blenkinsop - Improving the care of breastfeeding mothers and babies through the work of a breastfeeding co-ordinator
Midwifery Research Fellowship: Billie Hunter-McCardy - Emotion work in midwifery (also given the Ann Stewart Award)
The Trust also hosted a Midwifery Conference in Birmingham in 1999.
1998
Education Bursaries
Angela Cheyte, Jennifer Fraser, Debbie Garrod, Sara Nam, and Vanora Huntley (also given the Ann Steward Award)
General Award
Pam Woods
BHMB Award
Jennifer Barrowclough and Stephanie Carr
1997
Innovations Award
The Pals in Pregnancy Project, offering a confidential befriending service to vulnerable pregnant women living in disadvantaged circumstances
1996
Education Bursaries
Julie Breschinksy, Sheona Brown, Cheryl Davy, Julie Kirkham, Ellen Peachey, Lynn Scott
Midwifery Research Fellowship: Christine Kettle (also given the Ann Stewart Award)
1995
Education Bursaries
Allison Bester - Diploma in Professional Midwifery Studies
Pamela Fletcher - Masters in Advanced Midwifery Practice
Ann Foster- Diploma in Counselling
Mary Piper - Diploma in Health Service Management
Midwifery Research Fellowship
Andrew Symon
