Catalogue description Records created by the National War Savings Committee, later National Savings Committee and associated bodies

The National Savings Movement was founded in the autumn of 1915 when the Committee on War Loans for Small Investors, was appointed to consider means of encouraging the public to save money to help the war effort. In January 1916 the committee advocated the organisation of local voluntary savings associations and the introduction of 'war savings deposits', later designated 'war savings certificates', and now as 'national savings certificates'.

By a Treasury minute of 8 February 1916 two committees were set up: the National Organising Committee for War Savings and the Central Advisory Committee for War Savings. In April 1916 these two committees were combined as the National War Savings Committee. The title was changed to the National Savings Committee on 29 September 1919. Separate organisations were set up for Scotland and Ireland.

The aim of the National Savings Committee was to maintain throughout England and Wales an organisation to encourage the public to save by investment in national savings securities and deposits in the National (formerly Post Office) and Trustee Savings Banks.

Until 1969 the committee was directly responsible to the Treasury, which issued the securities with which the committee was mainly concerned: national savings certificates, national development (formerly defence) bonds and premium savings bonds.

The National Committee, assisted by committees at national and regional levels dealing with particular aspects of its work, controlled the activities of some 1300 local savings committees whose function it was to organise publicity for national savings and to promote the formation of savings groups run by voluntary workers.

In 1969 the civil service staff serving the National Savings Committee were integrated with the staff of the new Department for National Savings which had replaced the former Post Office Savings Department when the Post Office Corporation was established under the Post Office Act 1969.

From 1976, as part of the government's programme to reduce Civil Service manpower, staff support facilities provided by the Department for National Savings were withdrawn. In the light of this, the National Savings Committee decided it could no longer function effectively and the organisation was finally wound up in March 1978.