Vale Rawlings: Friendship Love & Truth

Aim

Raising funds for two Burton charities through publishing a book about the life and times of forgotten local man Vale Rawlings (1887-1940).

'Friendship, Love & Truth', a book about Vale Rawlings' life and times, is being published in late 2025 by the Vale Rawlings Project Community Interest Company and all profits will be split between Burton upon Trent charities SARAC (Sexual Abuse Rape Advice Centre) and YMCA Burton. 

How you can help

This Crowdfunder invites you to make a donation in return for a choice of four different rewards. These include a copy of the book, which you can collect in person in Burton upon Trent, and a copy of the book that you can have posted to any address in the UK. Alternatively, you can donate any amount and not choose a reward if you simply want to help us generate more awareness of Vale and more profit for our chosen charities.

Strikers! the play

The book will contain the script of the play about Vale, called 'Strikers!', which had a rehearsed reading at Burton Town Hall in December 2024. Profits from that one-off performance, and a charity screening of the film of that night, have so far raised a total of £2,800 which has been split between our two nominated charities. We chose SARAC and YMCA Burton as both reflect Vale's values and the causes that mattered to him during his lifetime. All profits from the book will also be split between these two charities.

Who was Vale Rawlings?

Vale was a passionate believer in the trade union movement and the Co-operative and Labour movements. He also believed that all men and women of all nations were equal and were united by the same ambitions to have security and safety for themselves and their family and friends. He was jailed in 1914 after he supported striking factory girls in Burton upon Trent, many of them aged 13 to 17. He spoke up for the rights of working women and working men to get the chance to vote in elections. He volunteered for charities that supported families affected by poverty and spoke out against profiteering by unscrupulous businesses and landlords during World War One. After the war, when he set up in business as a market gardener, he regularly gave produce away to those that were hungry and fought for local jobs for the unemployed of Burton upon Trent, better council housing and better roads. 

More about the book - Friendship, Love & Truth

The title of the book comes from a phrase that was embroidered on a banner carried through Burton streets by Vale and union members in 1913. It was also a  motto of the Oddfellows organisation, a friendly society formed in 1810 to try and improve quality of life through charitable support and care.

The book will look in detail at Vale's family background and what drove his burning desire to improve the lives of people in his home town. It also looks at the lives of working people in the early 20th century, the rise of democracy and the birth of the modern trade union movement. 

Vale was at the centre of a controversial court case weeks before World War One broke out. Labour Party founder Keir Hardie called it a gross miscarriage of justice and for a couple of weeks virtually every newspaper in the country was writing about Vale and his case was raised more than once in the House of Commons. This book will cover the trial arising from the co-called 'flycatcher girls' strike' in Burton Upon Trent drawing on newspaper reports of the time and statements and information still held by Vale's descendants in 2025. 

Vale was only four feet 11 inches and had a congenital heart condition, so his family didn't expect him to be called up when conscription was introduced. He spent the early years of the war fighting for Burton women and children to receive the allowances they were entitled to after family breadwinners went away to fight. He campaigned against profiteering that made it hard for people to keep a roof over their heads any buy food. He supported conscientious objectors to put their cases to local military tribunals and worked with the Burton Voluntary Aid Association to relieve the worst cases of poverty and distress.

Despite the minimum height for armed service never falling below five feet two, Vale was called up and a medical examination passed him as Class A - the highest level of fitness - despite admitting his health was 'poor'. Vale's journey as a conscientious objector is covered in detail in this book thanks to letters and documents held by his family and official papers still held by the Staffordshire Record Office.

The book also looks at how Burton was regenerated between the wars and the role Vale played when he was elected to serve on Tutbury Rural District Council, representing Branston. 

One chapter is devoted to the heart-breaking story of Constance Shreeve, a young woman who spent virtually her entire life in institutions before dying in tragic circumstances in Burton Workhouse in 1929. Vale's path crossed hers in the final weeks of her life because his role as a local councillor saw him sit on the Board of Guardians, who oversaw management of the workhouse. 

Other ways to help

Elaine is available to talk to groups, clubs and societies in the Midlands about Vale's story. She can focus, if required, on specific areas such as the fight for votes for women; conscientious objection in World War One or the rise of trade unionism. Contact her through the Facebook Page, Forgotten Burton Stories, or the website forgottenburtonstories.co.uk to find out more.

This project successfully funded on 3rd December 2025