1960-1972: AA in Nottingham and Leicester

Our 'Where to Find' was not published until 1960, so it is difficult to be certain when some meetings were started. However in the 1960 issue of 'Where to Find' there is a meeting listed as being held at a members house in Uppingham Rd, Leicester. This meeting however is not listed in 1961 but there is a meeting on Tuesday, 7.30 Friends Meeting House, Queens road, Leicester. This is the same meeting that is still going today, and in doing this research I have found a link to 'Keith O'. Meetings then remained static for a time and there was only one meeting in Leicester until 1967, when a meeting started on Wednesday 7.00 Reception center, Swain St.

The above was to set the pace for the next phase in our local development. In 1967 an open meeting of the fellowship took place at H. M. Prison, Leicester, this meeting was sponsored by Prison Inter-Group. The meeting was the first of its kind in the Midlands and was attended by 166 men and about 15 members of staff. There is anecdotal evidence that a prison group started in Leicester in 1968.

In 1968 two more meetings were started and the first meeting in Market Haurbrough, a name connected with this meeting is Jane, and she remained the meeting contact until 1973 when it then disappears from the 'Where to Find'. Around 1970 the members from Leicester were going further a field to meetings, and were starting to consider how to make our own fellowship more stable. By the end of 1972 there was six meetings in Leicester and one in Market Harbrough.

In 1962 Nottinghams second group started on a Monday 7.30 Friends Meeting House, Clarendon St, Nottingham. This meeting was short lived and was not listed in 1963. However in the same year the Nottingham first group moved from YMCA to Friends Meeting House on Wednesday at 8.00. Apart from a break in about 2007 this is the same meeting that is going today.

After a static period the next meeting to show up was the Mapperley Cottage group that meets on Sundays at 10.30. Up until the start of 1969 there was only the two meetings, then at the start of 1969 the Cottage group closed. In the latter part of 1969 the first meeting took place in Newark, Saturday 6.00, Rest room, Charles St, Newark. Up until 1972 Nottingham will have to put up with just one meeting in Nottingham, and one meeting in Newark. But along with Leicester, momentum gathered for the next phase of our fellowships survival.

Nottingham and Leicester, Intergroup archivist 2009.