Catalogue description Ministry of National Service: Records

The ministry had eight internal divisions, the Secretariat, the Finance Department, the Statistics Department, the Trade Exemptions Department, the Labour Supply Department, the Recruiting Department, the Registration Department and the Women's Work Department. The minister and the departmental heads, together with a number of Parliamentary representatives, formed the National Service Council which oversaw the activities of the ministry. In November 1917 the regional machinery for recruitment was fully organised. There were ten separate regional headquarters under regional directors of recruiting who were answerable to the director of recruiting at the ministry. The regions were London, East Anglia, South Eastern, South Western, Yorkshire and East Midlands, West Midlands, North Western, Northern, Scotland and Wales. They were further subdivided into areas. Subject to the regional directors were the deputy directors of recruiting, commissioners of medical services, and deputy controllers of registration and of statistics who carried out the functions of recruiting, registering and directing manpower in the regions and performing medical examinations.