Evelyn Elizabeth Latham
Initially one of the Police Court Missionaries in Plymouth at the start of the interwar era, Miss Latham subsequently became a Plymouth Probation Officer for women and girls. A key theme she promoted through her work was that girls were not solely to blame for moral wrongdoing in communities – men bore at least an equal responsibility. Most Plymouth girls who found themselves in trouble were, she insisted in the many public addresses she gave, victims of circumstance and not ‘bad girls’ and she worked hard to remove that stigma. She was initially superintendent of St Peter’s Rest, one of the rescue and preventive homes in Plymouth, and under her supervision, it laid emphasis on its role of helping girls and women of all ages, regardless of creed, who were in need of friendship, or protection and guidance or practical help. This entailed not only providing a refuge, but also extensive visiting in the local community to offer practical assistance and advice to those who applied for help. She reported that in 1931, for instance, 1,397 women had applied for rest or help. As part of her wider work in Plymouth, she encountered Lady Astor and, from its opening in 1924, was closely associated with the Virginia House Settlement and its work – she was, for instance, an enthusiastic dancer and gave dance teaching to those attending. Her enthusiasm and focus centred on rescue and preventive work, amongst girls and young people, continued into the 1950s, and she continued to demonstrate her firm belief in creating the basis for a morally and physically healthy life through sport and physical exercise. Miss Latham was also a firm supporter of instituting women police in Plymouth, as a key tool to improving the resources available to young girls and women. During the 1920s, she seems to have worked with Inspector Canney. She was referred to by the Dean of Exeter as the ‘friend to erring children’, She was awarded the MBE in 1949 for her work in the city.