The Media Archive for Central England is the public screen archive for the East and West Midlands. An independent charity and company based at the University of Lincoln, MACE acquires, catalogues, preserves and makes widely available moving image materials that inform our understanding of the diverse cultures and histories of communities between the Lincolnshire coast and the Welsh border.
This film is part of Free
Nottingham Wash House
Nottingham's last public laundry prepares for the final rinse. It's much more than a place to simply boil-wash your smalls - it's a source of news and the hub of the whole community.
From the collection of:
Overview
In March 1977 the Meadows area of Nottingham is due for redevelopment. But it's not just houses that are being cleared: it's a whole way of life typified by the local public laundry. This is no high street laundrette though, this is a public laundry on a grand scale: from boil wash tanks to industrial scale ironing. But it's the laundry's role as a community hub that has brought the women of the Meadows back over the generations and it is that which will be lost when it is gone.