Our society
Yvette, (Corona Worldwide Chair 2021-2026) Angela (Ex-President), Maud (Corona Worldwide Mauritius), Kathy, (Corona Worldwide International Branch coordinator).
A Society that is voluntary, non-political and open to people of all nationalities, whose motto is “Friendship and Service to the Community”.
It aims to promote and advance education in, and knowledge of, the people and culture of the countries of the world, with special reference to the Commonwealth. Its objective is to ensure that members receive friendship, understanding and support, both on arriving in a foreign land and returning to Britain. Branches also offer practical and financial aid, through volunteering their time and fund-raising, to those less fortunate in their community.
Its dominant skill is the experience of the women who volunteer to pass on their knowledge of life abroad to the uninitiated.
Corona Worldwide has had links with the Commonwealth since it (the Commonwealth) began. It is affiliated to the Federation of International Women’s Associations in London (FIWAL) and has active links with the Diplomatic Service Families Association, the Royal Commonwealth Society and The Women’s Council. Corona Worldwide is a founder member of the Joint Commonwealth Organisations (JCO) along with the Victoria League for Commonwealth Friendship, the Royal Commonwealth Society, the Commonwealth Countries League, the Commonwealth Girls Education Fund and the Women’s Council.
Corona Worldwide has changed with the times, but its core values remain the same: caring for its members, both at home and away, and although it may be a much smaller organisation than it was during its first fifty years of its existence, it is, to quote Baroness Scotland (the Commonwealth Secretary General), one of those “small organisations operating on a shoestring who are adding value to our family”.
Structure And Governance of Corona Worldwide
Corona Worldwide is governed by the Trustees Board, which meets three times a year, as does the Executive Committee, with the AGM being held in March each year. The London Headquarters is run by a team of volunteers, overseen by the Board of Trustees, following the guidelines of the Charities Commission.
The Board of Trustees consists of a President, Chairman, Honorary Treasurer and six Trustees, one of whom is a Chairman of an Overseas Branch. Thanks to modern technology, Corona Worldwide now has an overseas member of the Executive Committee and all AGMs are held in person, alongside virtual facilities, thereby enabling access to all members overseas, with a recording available to those in time zones further afield.
The Chairmen of all branches, both in the UK and overseas, receive copies of the Executive Committee meetings. Each branch of the Society submits a report to Headquarters three times a year to provide information on the support they give to their local communities and charities, as well as the social activities they undertake. They provide insight with comments on difficulties they might encounter, putting forward suggestions which help inform the governance of Corona Worldwide, and which are then disseminated to the other branches.
Members of the Trustees Board and Executive Committee have all lived overseas for many years, some for their whole working lives, and several were born in (ex) Commonwealth countries. They have returned to the UK bringing with them their understanding, experiences and wisdom of life within other cultures. Current Trustees have lived in Cyprus, India, Kenya, Kiribati, Malawi, Malta, Mauritius, Singapore, South Africa, Pakistan and Sri Lanka, as well as in many other countries that are not members of the Commonwealth.