Rooms of Our Own

Revealing the hidden ‘herstory’ of the Pankhurst Centre
Our work to conserve, restore and transform the Pankhurst Centre is one of the key visions of the Pankhurst Trust. This much-loved building has a special place in the hearts of so many, so you might be surprised to discover than in the 1970s and 1980s it faced a battle for survival.

On the brink of demolition it was thanks to the spirit and determination of campaigners that the birthplace of the suffragette movement was saved and the quest to transform it into a museum and feminist hub began.

This chapter of history has largely gone unexplored until now, but thanks to the support of The National Lottery Heritage Fund we are revealing ‘herstory’ in a project called Rooms of Our Own.

We’re connecting young people with the activism of the past, capturing the memories of those involved in saving the Pankhurst Centre, and ensuring that the Pankhurst Centre archive reflects the fullness of this chapter of history. And we’ll use the results to inspire the new and original creative responses.

To find out more and how you can be involved email charlie@manchesterhistories.co.uk

A project to reveal the hidden ‘herstory’ of the Pankhurst Centre.

Thanks to funding from the National Lottery Heritage Fund, the Pankhurst Trust are working in partnership with Manchester Histories to uncover a chapter of the centre’s history, which until now has largely gone unexplored.

Although now recognised internationally as a site of historic importance, as the former home of Emmeline Pankhurst and the place from where the suffragette movement was born, for many years the Pankhurst Centre’s significance was overlooked. It was thanks to women’s activism that the quest began in the 1970s to save the building, which faced the very real threat of demolition in 1978. This hard-fought campaign, and the vision that led to the creation of a museum and feminist hub, has never been fully explored until now.

The key focus of Rooms of Our Own project has been the Pankhurst Centre archive, with volunteers aged 18-25 working on the documents and photographs which already exist, as well as capturing the stories and voices of campaigners and project workers from the 1970s to 2014. As it progresses the project has used the archive to inspire creativity, including the making of original digital artwork, music and film.

For more information and details on how you can get involved please contact Charlie Booth on charlie@manchesterhistories.co.uk