British Naturism (until 2009, Central Council for British Naturism) is a members organisation with both individual and organisation members. It promotes

naturism Naturism is a lifestyle of practising non-sexual social nudity in private and in public; the word also refers to the cultural movement which advocates and defends that lifestyle. Both may alternatively be called nudism. Though the two terms ...

in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and ...

, and it is recognised by the International Naturist Federation as the official national naturist organisation in that country.

Definition

According to non-statutory guidance issued by the Crown Prosecution Service—

Naturism is used to describe the activities of persons who espouse nudity as part of their lifestyle. Whilst many naturists will restrict their activities to specially designated areas and/or places where there is a tradition of naked activity, such as nudist beaches, others may wish to enjoy nudity more widely.

According to the guidance a balance is to be struck between the naturist's right to freedom of expression and the right of the wider public to be protected from harassment, alarm and distress. As a member of the International Naturist Federation, British Naturism adopted the 1974 Declaration Agde that states that naturism is "a way of life in harmony with

nature Nature, in the broadest sense, is the physical world or universe. "Nature" can refer to the phenomena of the physical world, and also to life in general. The study of nature is a large, if not the only, part of science. Although humans are ...

, characterised by the practice of communal nudity with the intention of encouraging self-respect, respect for others and for the

environment Environment most often refers to: __NOTOC__ * Natural environment, all living and non-living things occurring naturally * Biophysical environment, the physical and biological factors along with their chemical interactions that affect an organism or ...

History

British Naturism traces its origins to 1891 when a short lived society called the "Fellowship for the Naked Trust" was formed in

British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance on the Indian subcontinent. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one ...

. This trust had ideals and principles very similar to many later organisations.

The Camp

The Camp was the first naturist club to be established in the

. It was set up by someone known only as Moonella and existed at a country house near Wickford in

Essex Essex () is a Ceremonial counties of England, county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the Riv ...

between 1924 and 1927. It was later replaced by a new venue called "The New Camp" near

St Albans St Albans () is a cathedral city in Hertfordshire, England, east of Hemel Hempstead and west of Hatfield, north-west of London, south-west of Welwyn Garden City and south-east of Luton. St Albans was the first major town on the old Roman ...

. This and several others were able to form the British Sun Bathers Association in 1943.

English Gymnosophical Society

Harold Booth published articles pertaining to naturism in many magazines at the turn of the century, and in 1922 the English Gymnosophical Society (EGS) was formed as a direct result of his work. It had a site in Wickford,

, which it used during the summer, and in winter it held meetings in

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

. By 1926 the EGS was renamed the New Gymnosophy Society and had a site at

Bricket Wood Bricket Wood is a village in the county of Hertfordshire, England, south of St Albans and north-northeast of Watford. History The area of Bricket Wood was mostly occupied by farmers until Bricket Wood railway station was built in 1861. In 18 ...

Hertfordshire Hertfordshire ( or ; often abbreviated Herts) is one of the home counties in southern England. It borders Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire to the north, Essex to the east, Greater London to the south, and Buckinghamshire to the west. For gov ...

which has subsequently been used by many different clubs. The oldest club still in operation is

Spielplatz Spielplatz (German for playground) is the longest-operating naturist resort in United Kingdom, and consists of located in the village of Bricket Wood, in the English county of Hertfordshire. As of 2021, the resort consists of 65 houses. History ...

which was founded in 1929 by Charles Macaskie and his wife Dorothy. It consists of 12 acres (4.9 ha) located in the village of

, in the

English county The counties of England are areas used for different purposes, which include administrative, geographical, cultural and political demarcation. The term "county" is defined in several ways and can apply to similar or the same areas used by each ...

. Concurrent to this, naturism was also practised at the Welsh Harp in

Hendon Hendon is an urban area in the Borough of Barnet, North-West London northwest of Charing Cross. Hendon was an ancient manor and parish in the county of Middlesex and a former borough, the Municipal Borough of Hendon; it has been part of Gre ...

, apparently from as early as 1921. From this sprang the National Sun and Air Association which ran national advertisement campaigns, as well as running a gymnasium in

Westbourne Grove Westbourne Grove is a retail road running across Notting Hill, an area of west London. Its western end is in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea and its eastern end is in the City of Westminster; it runs from Kensington Park Road in th ...

, London. By 1937, membership of this society was running at over 2000.

British Sun Bathers Association

In 1943 the British Sun Bathers Association (BSBA) was formed and became recognised as a national federation of clubs, which by 1951 had 51 member clubs or groups. However, by 1953, personal and ideological differences led to the formation of the rival Federation of British Sun Clubs (FBSC).

British Naturism (formerly CCBN)

Both organisations existed until their merger in 1964 to create the Central Council for British Naturism (CCBN). By 2006, CCBN was usually referred to as 'British Naturism' but officially changed the name to 'British Naturism' at the 2009 AGM. In 2009, it claimed a membership of about 13,000.

Milestones

*1957 - Naturist films shown in cinemas. *1958 - International Naturist Federation congress in Britain. *1965 - The hire of

public baths Public baths originated when most people in population centers did not have access to private bathing facilities. Though termed "public", they have often been restricted according to gender, religious affiliation, personal membership, and other cr ...

for naturist swimming began. *1970 - International Naturist Federation congress in Britain. *1978 - International Naturist Federation congress in Britain, and the setting aside of officially designated naturist beaches. *2003 - Parliament repeals all offences that explicitly make nudity an offence. *2007 - Parliament repeals the enabling power for councils to make bye-laws regulating standards of clothing to be worn for bathing. *2012 - First British Naturism National Convention held at

Ilam Hall Ilam Park is a country park situated in Ilam, on both banks of the River Manifold five miles (8 km) north west of Ashbourne, England, and in the ownership of the National Trust. The property is managed as part of the Trust's White Peak ...

Youth Hostel *2013 - Second British Naturism National Convention held at Yarnfield Park, Staffordshire *2016 - Third British Naturism National Convention held at the Melville Hotel,

Blackpool Blackpool is a seaside resort in Lancashire, England. Located on the northwest coast of England, it is the main settlement within the borough also called Blackpool. The town is by the Irish Sea, between the Ribble and Wyre rivers, and is ...

, from 14 to 16 October *2017 - Fourth British Naturism National Convention held at The Studio Venue,

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1.145 million in the city proper, 2.92 million in the We ...

, from 7 to 8 October *2018 - Fifth British Naturism National Convention held at The Studio Venue, Birmingham, from 6 to 7 October *2020 - British Naturism hosted the first onlin
Global Naturism Forum
using the Zoom videoconferencing platform, 14–15 October

Campaigns

British Naturism has sought legal and political protection against

discrimination Discrimination is the act of making unjustified distinctions between people based on the groups, classes, or other categories to which they belong or are perceived to belong. People may be discriminated on the basis of Racial discrimination, r ...

for naturists in the United Kingdom, where an opinion poll in 2008 estimated the number of people describing themselves as naturist or nudist at 3.7 million. It also runs public facing campaigns, including ''Women in Naturism'', which encourages women to try naturist activity, ''Bare all for polar bears'' which seeks to raise money for environmental conservation and ''The Great British Skinny Dip'', which encourages costume free swimming events to be run, not just by naturist clubs, but also public pools, spas, lidos and natural settings such as lakes. During the pandemic in 2020 British Naturism sought to build interest in naturism though a series of online events, including a public-facing charity event entitled
The Great British Take-off
. In April 2018, British Naturism announced that in discussion with the senior officer at the police college a mutually satisfactory solution was reached, and the resultant preamble and "decision tree" for dealing with complaints about public nudity has been uploaded to the Police Training manuals. British Naturism argues that Naturism is protected as a philosophical belief under the Equality Act of 2010. The Crown Prosecution Service issued guidance in 2013 updated in 2019, which, among other things, confirms that Section 5 of the

Public Order Act 1986 The Public Order Act 1986 (c 64) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It creates a number of public order offences. They replace similar common law offences and parts of the Public Order Act 1936. It implements recommendations

is unlikely to apply in cases of passive nudity. Serving police officers now have advice online and in their training manual.College of Policing Briefing Note
retrieved 3 December 2020 Using nudity for "

intentional harassment, alarm or distress Intentional harassment, alarm or distress is a statutory offence in England and Wales. It is an aggravated form of the offence of harassment, alarm or distress under section 5 of the Public Order Act 1986. The offence The offence is created by s ...

" remains an offence under Section 4A of the Public Order Act.

Notes

References

* *

External links

*
Young British Naturists (YBN)

Advice to naturists stopped by the police

College of Policing briefing note:Public nudity advice and decision aid
{{Webarchive, url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181011053529/http://library.college.police.uk/docs/nudity.pdf , date=11 October 2018 Organizations established in 1891 Clothing free organizations Organisations based in Northamptonshire Naturism in the United Kingdom Naturist resorts 1891 establishments in the United Kingdom