BRADFORD has been celebrating the centenary of women’s suffrage and the role the district has played in the movement in an event at City Hall.

Yesterday marked the 100-year anniversary of the Representation of the People Act, which enabled all men and some women over the age of the 30 to vote for the first time.

At the event in City Hall, archive film footage of the suffragette movement, creative performances, workshops took place, and there were also speeches from Bradford Council leader Councillor Susan Hinchcliffe and Council chief executive Kersten England.

The event also recognised two important moments in the suffragette movement involving Bradford, including celebrating the first British woman to sit in the House of Commons, Margaret Wintringham from Keighley.

In May 1908, a mass rally attended by more than 100,000 in support of the movement took place in Shipley Glen, and in 1910 a political meeting at St George’s Gall being addressed by Winston Churchill ended in chaos after being disrupted by a group of women.

Margaret Wintringham, born in Keighley and a student at Bolton Road School in Silsden and Keighley Girls’ Grammar School, became the first British MP to sit in the House of Commons after winning a by-election for the Liberal Party in September 1921 following the death of her husband Thomas Wintringham, who had been MP for Louth in Lincolnshire.

Two women had become MPs before her, London-born Constance Markievicz in 1918 and American Nancy Vastor in 1919, but as a Sinn Fein MP Mrs Markievicz never sat in the Commons, making Mrs Wintringham the first British woman to do so.

Street act Irregular Arts performed outside City Hall, and there were also displays from Bradford Libraries and Museums, and the Electoral Services department.k

Cllr Susan Hinchcliffe said: “It is such an honour to be a part of these celebrations marking such an important part of our history.

“This is the first event commemorating 100 years since some women were given the vote and there will be other events throughout the year across the district.

“It gives us a glimpse into what life was like as a suffragette and what they went through so we can take part in the democratic process today.”

Kersten England added: “This is a celebration of women and more specifically Bradford women and what they managed to achieve.

“It is a fascinating period of history and so important that we educate younger generations so they can fully appreciate the democracy we have now.”