Description: Accompanied by choral music, title cards (TCs) appear on screen: 'The South London Film Society presents' ... 'In The Service of Life' ... 'The work of the Union of Girls' Schools for Social Service'.

(1:02) Intertitle: 'In the Heart of South London, the U.G.S. Settlement devotes its services to the people of Peckham' ... 'The work is largely financed by the pupils at 124 girl's schools throughout Great Britain.' ... 'For these girls this film was made so that they may better appreciate the value of their support.'

(1:47) Exterior shot of James Alleyn’s Girls’ School, (JAGS). Two girls leave the school in smart uniforms. A woman narrator explains that these girls 'represent' all girls involved in supporting the U.G.S. settlement. The girls walk along the street and we see footage of traffic and a street sign for Staffordshire Street.

The girls enter the U.G.S. settlement. They are shown a map of the area, and through voiceover a woman member of settlement staff tells the girls, and the audience, the history of the settlement, opened by Queen Mary in 1931.

(3:50) The girls are taken to see the nursery. We see footage of young children playing outside. The children go inside to eat and drink milk while sitting around a table.

(5:25) The visiting girls then go to meet 'the black eagles, boys between 7-11 years'. The boys kick a ball around the floor.

(5:50) One of the girls then goes to see 'the squirrels', girls between 7-11 years old, who are doing craft activities. It is mentioned that there is a woman university 'senior' from UCL is also visiting and helping at the settlement.

(6:10) The girls have a tour of the dining area and the chapel.

(6:35) The girls are then taken to the youth club, for young people aged between fourteen and eighteen. We see the young people playing table-tennis and through voiceover we hear about all the activities on offer at the club. We see groups of young people and a young man boxing. The narrator tells us that all the young members pay sixpence a week to belong to the club, and we see a shot of payments being taken.

(7:30) Young boys play darts at the club. A boy boxes. A group of boys and young men play pool. The visiting girls then go to bed at the settlement.

(8:14) The next day, and the narrator tells us that the girls are going to visit people confined to their homes. We see the girls walking along a Peckham street. The narrator tells us that while Peckham still has some 'bleak houses in rows' the council has also built new flats in areas heavily impacted by wartime bombing.

(8:32) We cut to some new council built flats. The voice over tells us that a disabled woman lives here. The girls go into her flat. The narrator tells us that a member of the settlement staff visit her once a week. We see a pet bird that was a present from the settlement and a blanket given to the disabled woman by one of the participating schools.

(9:02) Next, the girls visit a disabled man who lives in the basement of a house with his wife. The wife strokes a cat. The man is lying in bed and has limited mobility. One of the girls puts a cigarette in his mouth and lights it, while the other girl puts an ashtray on his chest.

(9:48) We cut back to the settlement and see women cooking. We are told that they are preparing food for the 'old persons meal'. We then cut to a 'meals of wheels' van, ready to deliver meals for those who cannot come to the settlement. We then see elderly people lining up for food at the settlement. The narrator tells us that the elderly people can come 5 days a week and pay ten pence for dinner.

(10:45) After dinner, clubs take place. We see an elderly persons group called the 'sunshine club'. An older man member of the group plays the piano while the rest of the group listens. Upstairs there is another group of people, aged 75 and over, watching a television that was gifted to the settlement by a member of the U.G.S.

(11:55) Church choral music plays as the elderly club members leave the settlement. We see exterior shots of the settlement as the girls leave.

(12:59) Intertitle: 'This film was first shown at the Royal Festival Hall London on May 9th, 1956 in the presence of H.R.H. Princess Margaret, to mark the Diamond Jubilee of the Union of Girls' Schools for Social Service.'