SWINDON suffragette Edith New was one of the first to chain herself to the railings of 10 Downing Street over a century ago as part of the fight for equal rights for women.

And today marks the 100th anniversary of the Representation of the People Act that finally handed women the right to vote in parliamentary elections.

Events across the country will celebrate the contribution of the pioneer campaigners.

Leaders of the suffrage movements have already been immortalised by the Royal Mint, which commissioned a new 50p coin.

In June, a series of events in Swindon will mark the contribution of Edith New to the campaign for votes for women.

It follows a march through the town two years ago that saw modern women dress up as Georgian suffragettes, taking their battle to Old Town.

Leah Bevan-Haines, who organised the march, said: “We were walking Edith’s footsteps. We wanted to understand what women might have gone through back then.

“There is still so far to go with women’s equality.”

The Women’s Institute’s Ali Stump added: “It’s important to remember this is a modern struggle too.”

Coun Fionuala Foley, Swindon Borough Council cabinet member for education, paid tribute to the early suffragettes – but stressed that local councils had trailblazed ahead of Westminster. Some female ratepayers given the right to vote in local elections from 1869.

Although she confessed she was not a fan of all-women shortlists, believing that people should be rewarded on merit, Coun Foley said: “Women died for the vote. We still have people around the world dying for freedom of choice.

“I have never missed an election. My parents instilled in me – both mum and dad – that people died for our freedom.”

Sarah Church, Labour's MP candidate for South Swindon, said: "The dedication, tenacity and bravery of the suffragettes is an inspiration and a piece of democratic history that should never be forgotten.

"Women were beaten, imprisoned and force-fed, and some lost their lives, to guarantee that my grandmother, mother and I could exercise our democratic rights.

"I believe that the power afforded to us in democratic participation is one of our most fundamental rights and duties. 100 years later, we have seen the franchise extended to all citizens over 18, but there is a way to go to achieve real representative democracy: perhaps this will be the year for a real debate on electoral reform and extending voting rights to 16 year olds."

Edith New’s actions, which were carried out in the cause of winning votes for women, shocked society – and earned her a three-week sentence in Holloway prison in early 1908.

Six months later, she was back at Downing Street – home of then prime minister Herbert Henry Asquith. She smashed windows along with fellow suffragette Mary Leigh, winning each a two-month stretch in Holloway.

Born on North Street, Swindon, Edith New left her teaching job at Queenstown Infant School in 1901 to move to deprived South London.

She became a suffragette, a member of the then radical Women’s Social and Political Union and was at the forefront of the sometimes violent battle for women’s suffrage. The actions of Edith and her fellow campaigners helped win the vote for propertied women over 30. However, it wasn’t until 1928 that women were given the right to vote from the age of 21.

Tomorrow, we launch our campaign where you can nominate the women making a difference in your community.