House of Laymen

The records have been divided into 5 series as follows:

• York Province House of Laymen Reports, papers & printed material, 1892-1909 [HL.Y]
• Canterbury Province House of Laymen Reports & papers, 1886-1901 [HL.C]
• York Province: Convocation Journals & reports 1892-1904 [HL.Y.Conv]
• Canterbury Province: Convocation Reports 1896, 1902 [HL.C.Conv]
• Joint Sessions of the Houses of Laymen of both Provinces Reports 1899-1905 [HL.JS]

The question of lay representation in the 19th-century Convocation of the Canterbury and York provinces eventually led to proposals for Houses of Laymen in each province, which would meet with Convocation and would be consulted about matters requiring parliamentary legislation. Canterbury province's House of Laymen was set up in 1886, that of the York province in 1892.