The Women's Land Army

The landgirls also found that the work was hard on their clothes, so they were supplied with cheap, second hand battledress once their uniforms wore out. Rubber boots were important items for working on a farm, but with the war shortages, rubber became hard to get. Boots then had to be returned for reconditioning and sold back to the workers at a cheaper price. They were allowed to buy these without coupons. Although the women worked hard, they were not paid the same wages as men. If a man earned one shilling an hour (about 5p), a woman earned just over ten pence (about 4p). Some of the girls lived on the farms; some were housed together in hostels. They were moved between farms by the War Agricultural Committee to make sure they went where they were needed.

One such landgirl was Mrs Aldous. Click the player below to find out what she has to say about life in the Land Army.

Figure of a landgirl in uniform from the DeCoverly collection, Kelvedon.

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