Sir Robert Southern (17 March 1907''England & Wales, Civil Registration Death Index, 1916-2007'' – September 1999) was a

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English ...

co-operative A cooperative (also known as co-operative, co-op, or coop) is "an autonomous association of persons united voluntarily to meet their common economic, social and cultural needs and aspirations through a jointly owned and democratically-control ...

official. Born in

Prestwich Prestwich ( ) is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Bury, Greater Manchester, England, north of Manchester city centre, north of Salford and south of Bury. Historically part of Lancashire, Prestwich was the seat of the ancient parish ...

, Southern was educated at Stand Grammar School. He was interested in the co-operative movement from an early age, joining the

Co-operative Wholesale Society A co-operative wholesale society, or CWS, is a form of co-operative federation (that is, a co-operative in which all the members are co-operatives), in this case, the members are usually consumer cooperatives. According to co-operative economi ...

(CWS) in 1923. He studied at the

Co-operative College Co-operative College is a British educational charity dedicated to the promotion of co-operative values, ideas and principles within co-operatives, communities and society. Origins and development The Co-operative College was established in 1919 ...

, and from 1929 worked for the

Co-operative Union Co-operatives UK is a British co-operative federation described as "the central membership organisation for co-operative enterprise throughout the UK". It was founded in 1870 as the Co-operative Central Board, changing its name to the Co-oper ...

. In his spare time, he completed a degree in commerce with the

University of Manchester The University of Manchester is a public university, public research university in Manchester, England. The main campus is south of Manchester city centre, Manchester City Centre on Wilmslow Road, Oxford Road. The university owns and operates majo ...

. In 1946, Southern was appointed as assistant general secretary of the Co-operative Union, and he was promoted to general secretary in 1950. He remained in this post until his retirement, in 1972, also serving as a vice-president of the International Co-operative Alliance and as president of the 1969

Co-operative Congress The Co-operative Congress is the national conference of the UK Co-operative Movement. The first of the modern congresses took place in 1869 following a series of meetings called the " Owenite Congress" in the 1830s. Members of Co-operatives UK ...

. Southern devoted much of his spare time to the Stand Unitarian Chapel, serving as secretary of its trustees, and as superintendent of its

Sunday school A Sunday school is an educational institution, usually (but not always) Christian in character. Other religions including Buddhism, Islam, and Judaism have also organised Sunday schools in their temples and mosques, particularly in the West. S ...

. He was also secretary of the

Besses o' th' Barn Band Besses o' th' Barn Band is an English brass band that has been in existence in the Besses o' th' Barn area of Whitefield, Greater Manchester since at least 1818. A junior section, Besses Boys' Band, was established in 1943. Origins Besses o' th ...

Company, a brass band, and was active in the Radcliffe Literary Society and Camera Club. He was made a

Commander of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established ...

in 1953, and was knighted in the

1970 New Year Honours The New Year Honours 1970 were appointments in many of the Commonwealth realms of Queen Elizabeth II to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of those countries. They were announced in supplements to the ''Lon ...

References

{{Authority control 1907 births 1999 deaths Alumni of the Co-operative College Alumni of the University of Manchester Commanders of the Order of the British Empire British cooperative organizers Knights Bachelor People from Prestwich People educated at Stand Grammar School Date of death missing