The Plunket Society has been heralded as New Zealand's most successful voluntary organization. This book covers its history from 1907 to 2002, organized around three dominant strands: the mixed economy of welfare, maternal and infant health, and mothercraft and parenting.

Covering the history of the Plunket Society from 1907 to the present day, this book is organized around three dominant themes that contribute both to international historiography and to the social history of New Zealand. These themes are the mixed economy of welfare, maternal and infant health, and motherhood and parenting. Discussed in detail is how these three strands form an important contribution to New Zealand's social history. In particular, the public role of women as welfare providers, maternal and child health provision, and parenting roles and practices are examined. An in-depth study of the voluntary welfare system, this book will be of interest to welfare historians, women's studies historians, social historians of medicine, and government policy makers.