Muriel and Doris Lester &
The Heritage of the Kingsley Hall Community Centres

   The website of the Kingsley Hall Community Centres Heritage Committee (KHCCHC)

   Email : info@muriellester.org     Copyright  LAPOLLO Systems on behalf of KHCCHC

   Every attempt has been made to ensure no materials are used without permission of copyright

   owners. If you believe we have breached this please contact us to agree appropriate actions.

Welcome to Muriel Lester.Org Muriel & Doris Lester Doris Lester Lester Family The Origins of the Kingsley Halls KH Bow KH Dagenham Childrens House Childrens House Dagenham Gandhi KH Bow People KH Dagenham People Past Events Locations Heritage Project The Muriel Lester Archive Oral Histories Blue Plaques Heritage Committee Contact Us Data Protection

This website has been established by the Kingsley Hall Community Centres Heritage Committee to:

Welcome

Muriel Lester’s personal papers are now at the Bishopsgate Institute. The archive includes correspondence, diaries, notebooks, publications and photographs, and the papers of Doris Lester. It is a fascinating and historically important record of the Lester sisters’ work in Bow and Dagenham, and also of Muriel’s world travels in the cause of international peace. The Muriel Lester archives are being made accessible through an on-line catalogue, digital images and a  new interactive website.
Working with local schools, the Tower Hamlets Humanities Education Centre produced a learning pack, and Stitches In Time created a tapestry banner on the theme Symbols of Peace.

The Muriel Lester Archive resides at the Bishopsgate Institute in London

Description

To search what is in the archive click here

Feature: “One Family -- Two Kingsley Halls -- Three Generations – The Saville Family".
How one family has been linked with Kingsley Hall over 10 decades including participation in activities at the Kingsley Halls at Bow and Dagenham, Children’s House and their interactions with Muriel and Doris Lester and Gandhi
. Click here



Some of the materials have been electronically scanned and are available on this website.
Click here for the page that contains an index to scans of the Muriel Lester Archives held at Bishopsgate Institute with a reference as above. It is provided so that materials can be seen worldwide. At this point you will need to browse through the pictures by using the tools provided. It is intended that eventually the index will be provided on the internet from which photos will be selected directly.


On September 23, 2022 the Loan Agreement with Bishopsgate Institute was renewed for a further 3 years.
For detail of the archive contents see the Archive page

See our submission to the Greater London Authority and English Heritage for Muriel & Doris to become part of the “100 Blue Plaque women” at both Kingsley Halls, Bow & Dagenham.
We have been informed by English Heritage that our submission has been unsuccessful as a proposal was made, and rejected, in 2017. This  means that they cannot be considered again until 2027

We therefore commissioned the manufacture of private plaques which we have now been received. The Dagenham plaque was installed in March 2022  Full story

Or for detail of the contents see the Archive page