British Productivity Council


The British Productivity Council was a body that aimed to increase Britain's industrial efficiency. It was formed in 1951 and superseded the earlier Anglo-American Productivity Council, which was formally dissolved the next year. The Council was dissolved in 1999.

Organisation

The Council's chairmanship alternated between a representative of the trade unions and one from the industry. It had many notable directors including Ewart Smith, Sir Lincoln Evans, William Carron, Thomas Jacomb Hutton, Bertram White and Lord Williamson. Until 1973, it was funded by the UK government before it was reorganised into smaller Local Productivity Associations and renamed as the British Council of Productivity Associations.

Activities

The Council produced many films and distributed a publication called Target aimed at educating workers and employers about better workplace practices and adapting to changing markets. It also started the National Productivity Year and the Quality and Reliability Year campaigns in 1962 and 1966 respectively.