Pankhurst statue given go-ahead at ‘historic’ meeting
SCULPTURE TO STAND IN ST PETER’S SQUARE
PLANS for Manchester’s new Emmeline Pankhurst statue have been approved.
The bronze sculpture will stand proud in St Peter’s Square. It is set to be unveiled by the end of the year, to mark the centenary of women first getting the vote.
Councillors approved blueprints yesterday, at what campaigners have dubbed a ‘historic’ meeting.
The idea for a new statue – which would be only the second of a woman in the city centre, after Queen Victoria – came from Didsbury councillor Andrew Simcock, who set up the WoManchester project two years ago.
Designed by sculptor Hazel Reeves, it will show the iconic Mancunian Suffragette standing on a chair as if addressing a crowd, arm outstretched. It will face out towards the Free Trade Hall, which was a venue for radical Suffragette campaigning in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
Fatima Shahid, 11, from Wythenshawe, told the planning meeting: “Having this statue in Manchester shows the rest of the country that we are a fair and modern city.
“I look forward to next year when I can visit the city centre and call to see Emmeline and say hello.”
The Newall Green Primary School pupil added: “Then, in years to come, I can bring my children and my grandchildren and tell them Emmeline’s story and tell them how I had a say in her statue being here.
“There is still lots to do to make life more equal for men and women.
“Emmeline Pankhurst made change possible. Since then, our parents, grandparents and great grandparents have been working hard to carry on her vision and her principles.
“And my generation will make sure we have a truly equal world.”
After a public vote on a shortlist of 20 legendary Mancunian women, Pankhurst was selected as the iconic female most deserving of a permanent memorial.
The unveiling of the statue had originally been pencilled in for International Women’s Day in 2019.
But late last year, the government announced a further £200,000 for the project as part of its Centenary Cities programme, intended to mark the 100th anniversary of women first being allowed to vote in a general election.
On Tuesday, on the centenary of the Representation of the People Act, Prime Minister Theresa May was shown a maquette of the design when she met with Pankhurst’s great grand-daughter Helen.
Coun Simcock said: “After almost four years of work on the project to create a statue of a woman of significance to Manchester, I am delighted that we have reached this next important milestone.”
The meeting circle on which the statue will stand is expected to be unveiled in July.