The Peckham Experiment was an experiment designed to determine whether people as a whole would, given the opportunity, take a vested interest in their own health and fitness and expend effort to maintain it. The experiment took place between 1926 and 1950, initially generated by rising public concern over the health of the working class and an increasing interest in preventive social medicine.
George Scott Williamson (1884–1953) and Innes Hope Pearse (1889–1978), two doctors who later married, opened the Pioneer Health Centre in a house in Queen's Road SE5 in 1926, choosing Peckham, in south east London, because "this populace roughly represents a cross-section of the total populace of the nation with as widely differing a cultural admixture as it is possible to find in any circumscribed metropolitan area" –. [1] Their aim was to study health as a medical condition in a manner comparable to studies of the natural history of disease. [2] The first phase closed in 1929. The findings were disseminated, and funding was then sought to build a larger, purpose-designed, centre. This re-opened in 1935 in a purpose-built modern building in St Mary's Road, often quoted as an early example of how new architectural techniques could help further bold new social experiments.
The new building, designed by Sir Owen Williams was described in detail in the Bulletin of the Pioneer Health Centre, 1949. [3] It moved away from the traditional lines dominating medical buildings. Williams created a large open space using the latest structural techniques, allowing the centre's doctors to properly observe the members. At the middle of the centre a large swimming pool was covered by a glazed roof, which, along with large areas of windows, allowed natural light into the building. These windows could be fully opened to circulate fresh air into the building. The cork floors allowed people to move about barefoot.
Williamson and Pearse recruited 950 local families to be part of "The Peckham Experiment". By paying a nominal membership fee of one shilling (equivalent to £4in 2023) a week, [4] a family had access to a range of activities such as physical exercise, swimming, games and workshops. Members underwent a medical examination once a year, and they were monitored throughout the year as they participated in the centre's events.
Central to Scott Williamson's philosophy was the belief that left to themselves people would spontaneously begin to organise in a creative way, and this happened, the members initiating a wide range of sporting, social and cultural activities using the facilities offered by the centre.
The centre went into abeyance during the Second World War, but was restored to a condition fit for re-opening by the members themselves. Edwina Mountbatten was a governor in 1949. [5] In 1950, however, it finally closed, since its innovative approach did not fit well with the new National Health Service, and it proved impossible to obtain adequate funding from other sources to keep it going as an independent concern. As noted by Duncan (1985),
“In many ways, both the wellness movement and the family practice movement were foreshadowed by their family-centered approach and their finding that most apparently well individuals actually suffered from some detectable disorder.”
The buildings were later transferred to Southwark Council. The council operated a leisure centre in the buildings (including the swimming pool), and they also provided educational facilities as part of the Southwark Adult Education Institute.
Williamson, Pearse and some others involved in the experiment were supporters of organic farming, and they became involved with the Soil Association in 1946. [6]
Writing in the 1960s, the sociologist Peter Townsend reflected that 'as a boy I knew one of the doctors involved in the Peckham health Centre and had always been inspired by its ideals'. [7]
In the 1990s the remaining buildings were sold by the council and converted into housing, but retain listed building status. This occurred after the responsibility for adult education was significantly reduced and transferred from the local council to Southwark College. Replacement leisure facilities were provided at the Peckham Pulse Healthy Living Centre by Peckham Town Square.
The Pioneer Health Foundation, the charity responsible for the Peckham Experiment continues to exist as a registered charity under English law, [8] the trustees recognising a need to disseminate the findings and also to keep open the possibility of a further centre or centres opening. Notwithstanding the many changes to society and medicine since the Peckham Experiment, The foundation believes that the principles identified by Williamson are basic to health and are of continuing relevance to society. T his includes the valuable evidence produced about the relationship between social and home environment and individual motivation and health.
As part of its activities, the foundation launched the "Mary Langman Prize", an annual award for an essay on "The Relevance of the Peckham Experiment in the 21st Century" that furthers the lessons learnt at the Pioneer Health Centre about the social, emotional and environmental determinants of health. Mary Langman was personal assistant to Scott Williamson and made a bequest to enable such initiatives.
The Peckham Experiment is referred to in the classic science fiction novel Macroscope by Piers Anthony, wherein an extension of the Peckham Experiment techniques are used to raise a group of children to far-above-average intelligence, resulting in one transcendental genius. It is also mentioned in "Notes Toward the Definition of Culture", by T. S. Eliot during his discussion on education and the family. The experiment is also briefly referenced in Franz Fanon's book Black Skin, White Masks when discussing the connection between of the prestige of the French language and the social status of educated Antillean blacks returning to Martinique after visiting and being educated in France.
The surviving archives of the Pioneer Health Centre, which include personal papers of Scott Williamson and Innes Pearse, as well as material on subsequent attempts to recreate the experiment elsewhere, are now in the Wellcome Library. There are also numerous books published during and after the centre's lifespan by individuals who were involved in its work.
Peckham is a district in south-east London, within the London Borough of Southwark. It is 3.5 miles (5.6 km) south-east of Charing Cross. At the 2001 Census the Peckham ward had a population of 14,720.
GKT School of Medical Education is the medical school of King's College London. The school has campuses at three institutions, Guy's Hospital (Southwark), King's College Hospital and St Thomas' Hospital (Lambeth) in London – with the initial of each hospital making up the acronymous name of the school. The school in its current guise was formed following a merger with the United Medical and Dental Schools of Guy's and St Thomas' Hospitals on 1 August 1998. As of 2023, the medical school is ranked 5th best in the UK for clinical medicine by U.S. News & World Report, and 10th best worldwide by Times Higher Education.
Archibald Leman Cochrane was a Scottish physician noted for his book, Effectiveness and Efficiency: Random Reflections on Health Services, which advocated the use of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) to improve clinical trials and medical interventions. His advocacy of RCTs eventually led to the creation of the Cochrane Library database of systematic reviews, the UK Cochrane Centre in Oxford and Cochrane, an international organization of review groups that are based at research institutions worldwide. He is known as one of the fathers of modern clinical epidemiology and is considered to be the originator of the idea of evidence-based medicine. The Archie Cochrane Archive is held at the Archie Cochrane Library at University Hospital Llandough, Penarth.
St Thomas' Hospital is a large NHS teaching hospital in Central London, England. Administratively part of the Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust, together with Guy's Hospital, Evelina London Children's Hospital, Royal Brompton Hospital and other sites. It is also a member of King's Health Partners, an academic health science centre, and is one of three sites used by King's College London GKT School of Medical Education.
The Soil Association is a British registered charity focused on the effect of agriculture on the environment. It was established in 1946. Their activities include campaigning for local purchasing, public education on nutrition and certification of organic foods, and against intensive farming.
King's College Hospital is a major teaching hospital and major trauma centre in Denmark Hill, Camberwell in the London Borough of Lambeth, referred to locally and by staff simply as "King's" or abbreviated internally to "KCH". It is managed by King's College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust. It serves an inner city population of 700,000 in the London boroughs of Southwark and Lambeth, but also serves as a tertiary referral centre in certain specialties to millions of people in southern England. It is a large teaching hospital and is, with Guy's Hospital and St. Thomas' Hospital, the location of King's College London School of Medicine and one of the institutions that comprise the King's Health Partners, an academic health science centre. The chief executive is Dr Clive Kay. It is also the birthplace of Queen Camilla.
Guy's Hospital is an NHS hospital founded by Thomas Guy, located in the borough of Southwark in central London. It is part of Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust and one of the institutions that comprise the King's Health Partners, an academic health science centre.
Cancer Research UK (CRUK) is the world's largest independent cancer research organisation. It is registered as a charity in the United Kingdom and Isle of Man, and was formed on 4 February 2002 by the merger of The Cancer Research Campaign and the Imperial Cancer Research Fund. Cancer Research UK conducts research using both its own staff and grant-funded researchers. It also provides information about cancer and runs campaigns aimed at raising awareness and influencing public policy.
The Wellcome Trust is a charitable foundation focused on health research based in London, United Kingdom. It was established in 1936 with legacies from the pharmaceutical magnate Henry Wellcome to fund research to improve human and animal health. The aim of the Trust is to "support science to solve the urgent health challenges facing everyone." It had a financial endowment of £29.1 billion in 2020, making it the fourth wealthiest charitable foundation in the world. In 2012, the Wellcome Trust was described by the Financial Times as the United Kingdom's largest provider of non-governmental funding for scientific research, and one of the largest providers in the world. According to their annual report, the Wellcome Trust spent GBP £1.1 billion on charitable activities across their 2019/2020 financial year. According to the OECD, the Wellcome Trust's financing for 2019 development increased by 22% to US$327 million.
Sir Henry Solomon Wellcome was an American pharmaceutical entrepreneur. He founded the pharmaceutical company Burroughs Wellcome & Company with his colleague Silas Burroughs in 1880, which is one of the four large companies to eventually merge to form GlaxoSmithKline. He left a large amount of capital for charitable work in his will, which was used to form the Wellcome Trust, one of the world's largest medical charities. He was a keen collector of medical artefacts which are now managed by the Science Museum, London, and a small selection of which are displayed at the Wellcome Collection.
Sir Percy Malcolm Stewart, 1st Baronet, was an English industrialist and philanthropist. He incorporated the London Brick Company in the 1920s, which was at the time reputed to be the largest brick-making company in the United Kingdom.
William Piercy, 1st Baron Piercy CBE was a British economist, civil servant, businessman and financier. He is best remembered as chairman of the Industrial & Commercial Finance Corporation from 1945 to 1964.
The School of Biological Sciences is a School within the Faculty Biology, Medicine and Health at The University of Manchester. Biology at University of Manchester and its precursor institutions has gone through a number of reorganizations, the latest of which was the change from a Faculty of Life Sciences to the current School.
Wellcome Collection is a museum and library based at 183 Euston Road, London, England, displaying a mixture of medical artefacts and original artworks exploring "ideas about the connections between medicine, life and art". Founded in 2007, the Wellcome Collection attracts over 550,000 visitors per year. The venue offers contemporary and historic exhibitions and collections, the Wellcome Library, a café, a bookshop and conference facilities. In addition to its physical facilities, Wellcome Collection maintains a website of original articles and archived images related to health.
The Prince's Foundation for Integrated Health (FIH) was a charity run by King Charles III founded in 1993. The foundation promoted complementary and alternative medicine, preferring to use the term "integrated health", and lobbied for its inclusion in the National Health Service. The charity closed in 2010 after allegations of fraud and money laundering led to the arrest of a former official.
Y Touring Theatre Company was a national touring theatre company which produced original plays and debates exploring contemporary issues. It was founded in 1989 by Nigel Townsend. The company was based in Kings Cross, London, England and was a former operation of Central YMCA.
Colonel Alfred Edward Webb-Johnson, 1st Baron Webb-Johnson, known as Sir Alfred Webb-Johnson, Bt, between 1945 and 1948, was a British surgeon.
The Medical Women's Federation is the largest UK body of women doctors. The organisation is dedicated to the advancement of the personal and professional development of women in medicine and to improving the health of women and their families in society. It was founded in 1917, and its headquarters are located in Tavistock Square, London.
Innes Hope Pearse (1889–1978) was an English medical doctor who co-founded a health centre that became famous as part of the Peckham Experiment. This was a project rooted in Pearse's interest in studying and promoting health in a social context.
James Howard Brown was an American professor of bacteriology. He was the president of the American Society for Microbiology in 1931.