Charlotte Kelly In 1937, Stella Browne, an active member of the Fabian Society, told a Commons Committee that she had previously chosen an abortion. In doing so, she was confessing to the criminal act of procuring a miscarriage under the 1861 Offences Against the Person Act, a crime carrying a maximum sentence of life imprisonment. No legal action was taken against her. As a founder of the Abortion Law Reform Association, she described the ban on abortion as “a sexual taboo [

Catherine Deakin Catherine Deakin is a charity director and Chair of Governors at a primary school. She is a former local councillor and Labour parliamentary candidate. As we’re in the full swing of the school holidays, now is the perfect time to think about taking on a new public leadership role before September. Every day, thousands of school governors help shape the education of millions of children and make decisions about strategy, safeguarding and spending. It’s one o

Anya Sizer is a member of the Fabian Women Network's executive committee Perhaps because the parallels with my own situation (having recently lost my truly loved job in politics due to the elections) or perhaps because so much of my social media seemed to have been picking up on one woman’s story, it was no surprise that the formidable Stacey Duguid’ recent posts hit me in the way they did. When I spoke to her, Stacey describes being “dumbfounded” at the response to her post

There are days in politics that remind you why you got into it in the first place, and days that make you wonder why you bother. At Sir Keir Starmer's final Prime Minister's Questions, the House of Commons gave us the first kind of day. As a Labour councillor, an immigrant woman of colour sitting in opposition on my own council, I want to tell you why it mattered. Watching PMQs is rarely a lesson in grace. It is usually a lesson in performance: point-scoring dressed up as scr

It was a measure of just how important an event this was, that many of us found ourselves braving the hottest day on record to attend the launch of the Red cross UK’s report: Designing for health equity Hosted by Baroness Nargund (who has spent decades working on issues of health equity) we also heard from the Red cross’ Executive director Lisa Hollins , Sharon Hodgson MP, and the inspirational Sir Michael Marmot. Designing for heath equity highlights the incredible and wide

Lisa Raftery is a charity sector funder and co-organiser of the Cross-Sector Taskforce on Online Misogyny and Men’s Mental Health. She is an FWN mentee (Cohort 10) and former Co-Vice Chair of the FWN Executive Committee. In February, the Misogyny Policy Project, working alongside Fabian Women, Male Allies UK, Jess Asato MP and Alistair Strathern MP, hosted a roundtable and reception in Parliament to launch the Cross-Sector Taskforce on Online Misogyny and Men’s Mental Health.

To celebrate Black History Month, FWN are publishing a series of articles on inspiring black women from History. Jackie Taylor writes about Hyacinth Jarrett. Born in Mandeville, Jamaica in 1932 Mrs Hyacinth Jarrett travelled to England in 1956. She embarked on a career of Nursing but soon realised that she had a gift for hairdressing, establishing her own business Jarrett’s Hairdressers in 1970. Mrs Jarrett soon became an expert in Black, European and Asian hair and styling.

Black History Month: What is it, and why does it matter? By Marianna Masters Every October, Black History Month invites us to pause, reflect, and honour the legacy of Black communities in Britain and Black people oversees who have shaped our culture. But in 2025, with so much unfolding around us, from rising far-right rhetoric to the continued marginalisation of Black voices, it’s not enough to simply mark the occasion. We need to ask: why does this month matter, and what are

To celebrate Black History Month, FWN are publishing a series of articles on inspiring black women from History. Our Chair, Marianna Masters, writes about Mary Seacole On my many trips to St Thomas’s Hospital as a former Public Governor for Guy’s & St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust, I would pass the statue of Mary Seacole. She stands tall, striding forward into the wind, just outside the building where so many lives are cared for. I often paused—not just to admire the sculptu

To celebrate Black History Month, FWN are publishing a series of articles on inspiring black women from History. Kamal Preet Kaur provides some reflections, as a brown woman. I'll never forget my maiden speech at Hillingdon Council. I stood up to support Black History Month motion and shared an anecdote about a Black MP who was directed to the service lift. They thought she was there to clean, not to legislate. And then, the Tory councillors voted it down. The motion was lost

To celebrate Black History Month, FWN are publishing a series of articles on inspiring black women from History. Susan Fajana-Thomas OBE writes about Claudia Jones. As a resident of Stoke Newington in Hackney, every time I walk past this building on Stoke Newington Road and see the faded sign with the name 'Claudia Jones Organisation', it reminds me of the great woman, Claudia Jones. I read about her over two decades ago, and her story helped shape my dedication to challengin

To celebrate Black History Month, FWN are publishing a series of articles on inspiring black women from History. Rachel Burgin writes about an African slave known as Jane. d 1700, Mildred Gale nee Warner of Warner Hall Virginia, wife of George Gale merchant of Whitehaven, Here also lie with her, her baby daughter and her African slave Jane. This simple (now lost) Whitehaven gravestone has enough history packed in its handful of words to fill a museum. But it also tells the tr

To celebrate Black History Month, FWN are publishing a series of articles on inspiring black women from History. Kelly Grehan writes about Olive Morris. Olive was a fearless activist, community leader, and tireless fighter for justice whose legacy continues to inspire movements today. Born in Jamaica and raised in South London, she became a central figure in struggles against racism, sexism, and inequality in Britain during the 1970s. Morris’s activism was bold and hands-on.

To celebrate Black History Month, FWN are publishing a series of articles on inspiring black women from History. Rachael Lotus writes about Gertrude Paul. Gertrude Paul was born in St Kitts and moved to Leeds in 1956. Despite being a qualified teacher already, she was required to complete British qualifications which she did by the early 1960s and became Leeds’ first black teacher. In 1976 she became the first black headteacher in the city, leading Elmhurst Middle School A na

To celebrate Black History Month, FWN are publishing a series of articles on inspiring black women from History. Liz Hind writes about Jessye Norman Jessye Norman was a soprano opera with an amazing voice and an extraordinary range. She sang in the great opera houses of the world including the Royal Opera House, La Scala and the Metropolitan Opera. She was also booked to sing at historical occasions including presidential inaugarations, the anniversary of the French revolutio

Powering and elevating our children and young people is what we seek for our children here in Hackney.

By Kamal Preet Kaur On Wednesday, 18th of June, I had the honour of attending the Parliamentary Great Get Together at Speaker’s House,...

Anya Sizer Women's health for so long has been the subject of a lack of care and medical focus, and so it was heartening and hugely...

As Labour settles into government, a frontline councillor reflects on early progress and the challenges that lie ahead By Kamal Preet...

Editor’s note: it was a huge privilege to spend part of polling day campaigning for Alex Bulat in St Ives – and a joy to see that she had...