Editha Olga Yseult, Lady Bailey (, 3 July 1903 – 1 August 1980) was founding president of the Canberra Nursery Kindergarten Society (1943), and president of the Australian Capital Territory branch of the National Council of Women (1946–50).

Life and career

Bailey was born on 3 July 1903, in London, England. Her father was Frank Samuel Donnison. She was educated at Wycombe Abbey, a renowned independent school for girls, and went on to study sculpture at the

Slade School of Fine Art The UCL Slade School of Fine Art (informally The Slade) is the art school of University College London (UCL) and is based in London, England. It has been ranked as the UK's top art and design educational institution. The school is organised as ...

, at the

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. She met her future husband Kenneth Bailey, a

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from Melbourne, through her brother Vernon Donnison, who was at

Corpus Christi College, Oxford Corpus Christi College (formally, Corpus Christi College in the University of Oxford; informally abbreviated as Corpus or CCC) is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1517 by Richard Fo ...

with him. Despite the ill feelings of her mother, Yseult Bailey married Kenneth Bailey on 12 August 1925 at Queen's College Chapel at the

University of Melbourne The University of Melbourne (colloquially known as Melbourne University) is a public university, public research university located in Melbourne, Australia. Founded in 1853, it is Australia's second oldest university and the oldest in the state ...

. Living in Melbourne in the 1930s and early 1940s, and mother of three sons, Yseult Bailey was active in the Kindergarten Union of Victoria, the establishment of the Lady Gowrie Centre for pre-school education and the University Women's Wartime Nursery. During World War II the family moved to Canberra, where Kenneth Bailey was Consultant to the Commonwealth Government and later head of the Attorney-General's Department. Yseult Bailey became active in the movement to establish a kindergarten in Canberra. In 1942 she was a member of an unsuccessful delegation to the Minister for Health and Social Services, E. J. Holloway, seeking the establishment of a nursery school in Canberra to free mothers for war work. After the focus changed to seeking provision of a nursery kindergarten, Yseult Bailey and two other members of the deputation were invited to Government House to advise Lady Gowrie on the progress of the project. Following this meeting, Yseult Bailey was appointed president of a provisional pre-school committee. She continued in this role when the Canberra Nursery Kindergarten Society (later the Canberra Pre-School Society) was formally constituted in November 1943. Yseult Bailey was prominent in the formation of the Australian Pre-School Association, served as president, was made a life member and remained an honorary life vice-president until her death. In the New Year's Honours of 1961, she was appointed an

Officer of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

(OBE) for her work for pre-school education. Her husband was knighted in 1958, and she became Lady Bailey. She died on 1 August 1980, in England, aged 77.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bailey, Editha Olga 1903 births 1980 deaths Australian women philanthropists Alumni of the Slade School of Fine Art Australian Officers of the Order of the British Empire English emigrants to Australia 20th-century Australian women 20th-century Australian philanthropists 20th-century women philanthropists