Women in the War

Women played a vital role in the war effort, often taking on jobs traditionally carried out by men.

Some young women joined the Women’s Land Army and helped ensure Britain could still produce food. Others worked in factories and provided manual labour.

A member of the Women's Land Army loading sacks on a trailer, c1940
Women's Land Army loading or emptying a tractor trailer
A land girl operating a tractor
Four members of the Women's Land Army sit around what could be a brick oven, 1941
Mrs Sylvia Bellis, aged 22, driving a crane at Brighton Station during the Second World War.