13 May 2019

Monday

Extraordinary – you go in to a Norfolk church (St Peter, Blofield) and there is – a baby clinic. This is a detail from one of the two Harker memorial windows designed in 1936 by Reginald Bell (1886-1950): the windows (here) tell the story of Margaret Harker’s remarkable life: ‘As well as being deeply involved in her local Red Cross work she served as a Justice of the Peace, a prison visitor and was a regular worshipper at Blofield parish church.’ And that was only the half of it, thus ‘worried by the high rate of infant deaths she established, in 1919, an infant welfare clinic in the village. Thought to be the first such clinic in the county it provided a place where mothers could bring their children for weighing, advice and examination by a doctor, the doctor’s fees being paid by Mrs Harker. VAD nurses performed duties here under her leadership.’ (Nb, another consignment of Jane Brocket’s book has just arrived in the shop, it’s so heartening that Persephone readers read the Post and then order the book.)