Do you feel that women’s voices are fully heard in politics today?
Do our parliaments and decision-making spaces really reflect the lives of the people they serve?
And if not, what would it take to change that?
These are questions that women have been asking for generations. In my family, they are also deeply personal ones.
My great-grandmother was Emmeline Pankhurst, and my grandmother was Sylvia Pankhurst. Their generation fought – often at great personal cost – for women to have a voice in politics.
They won the vote, but they also knew that real equality wouldn’t arrive overnight. The struggle for women to be heard, represented and taken seriously in public life would continue long after them.
More than a century later, that is still true and as Sylvia wrote “Great is the work that remains to be accomplished.”
Women remain under-represented in politics in the UK and around the world. Decisions that affect our families, communities and futures are still too often made in rooms where women’s voices are missing or outnumbered. At a time of rising political division, global conflict, economic pressure on families and increasingly polarised public debate, it matters enormously who is shaping those decisions.
That is why I work with Centenary Action, a cross-party campaign dedicated to advancing women’s political representation in the UK. Our goal is simple: to help create a Parliament – and political system – that properly reflects the population it serves.
And this is where the story of the suffragettes continues to inspire.
The musical Sylvia tells the story of my grandmother Sylvia Pankhurst and the wider suffragette movement in a bold, energetic way – mixing hip hop, soul and powerful storytelling to bring the history of the fight for women’s rights to life for new audiences.
The show will be touring the UK in the autumn of 2026, bringing the story of the suffragettes to Leicester, Birmingham, Edinburgh, Norwich, Canterbury, before culminating in a special performance at the Royal Albert Hall in London, where more than 25 suffrage rallies were held. It’s a reminder that the movement was never just about the past – it's about what it’s like for women now and how we can pass change and progress to our children and generations to come.
I’m particularly delighted that Mumsnet – a long-standing partner of Centenary Action – is helping to share this work. Mumsnet has long been a place where women talk openly about politics, public life and the issues affecting their families.
That kind of space matters. When women talk about politics, engage with it and encourage each other to step forward, democracy becomes stronger.
To celebrate the musical and help continue the suffragettes’ legacy, we’re running a special SYLVIA prize draw.
The prize offers a unique theatre experience around the show – including the chance to be part of a very special moment in its journey – and every entry helps support Centenary Action’s work to advance women’s representation in politics.
You can enter the March Women’s History Month prize draw here.
The suffragettes were not distant historical figures. They were mothers, daughters, workers and organisers. Many of them were juggling everyday life while pushing for change.
Their courage transformed our democracy. But the work of making that democracy truly representative is still unfinished.
That’s why continuing their legacy matters – and why so many of us are determined to keep going.