Celebrating Women: International Women’s Day and Women's History Month 2025

Accelerating Action

March 8th is International Women’s Day. This year’s theme, Accelerate Action, acknowledges the progress made but highlights the need for greater attention and urgency in addressing gender inequality. 

According to data from the World Economic Forum, it will take until 2158 to reach full gender equality at the current rate of progress. 

As we highlight in our IWD 2025 Assembly, while women make up 51% of the UK population there are still large gender disparities. In relation to positions of power, for example, 40% of MPs are women, only 11% of FTSE CEOs are women and 30% of High Court judges are women.

In health, gender inequality disproportionately affects women and girls globally, marginalising their needs and reducing access to healthcare information and services, water, hygiene and sanitation. The UK has the widest gender health gap in the G20 and the 12th widest globally, with women spending three more years in poor health and disability compared to men. Men’s violence against women is a leading cause of premature death for women globally, and a woman is killed by a man every three days in the UK. In fact, violence against women and girls was labelled as a national threat in 2021.

Women’s History Month 2025

Whilst it is important to discuss and better understand present inequalities, Women’s History Month also invites us to look into the past. First established in 1981 in the US as Women’s History Week, it became Women’s History Month in 1987 and has been celebrated in the UK since then. It is an important opportunity to discover, acknowledge and celebrate the diversity of women’s lives and achievements throughout history.

Researching Women’s History with AncestryClassroom 

We are fortunate to partner with Ancestry, who provide educators and students with free access to historic record collections, classroom resources and professional learning tools through AncestryClassroom.

Researching women’s lives through AncestryClassroom supports students in developing their own research skills and in accessing primary sources and documentation that can amplify these diverse and often marginalised stories. Here, we highlight three women from the records. 

Elizabeth Tunstall from County Durham was found not guilty by a judge ‘by reason of insanity’ and sent to the notorious Bethlem Hospital in London in 1819. Her crime, that of attempting to blackmail a Reverend with accusations of bigamy. In England at the time, any man or woman who could threaten the reputation or power of another more powerful individual could be declared insane and imprisoned. Elizabeth maintained that the Reverend was married to her, and to another woman. The notes from Bethlem show that her physician saw no evidence of mental illness. She was discharged from the hospital three years later in 1822.   

Learn more about Bethlem here.

Pauline Peters joined the Queen’s Nursing Institute of Scotland in 1891. She worked as a superintendent and inspector general, caring for those who could not afford private home nursing. In 1905 she was honoured by Princess Louise, Queen Victoria’s daughter, at an event at Kensington Palace and given £175 (over £15,000 today) in recognition of her devotion to nursing.  

Learn more about the Queen’s Nursing Institute Scotland here.

Elizabeth Vickers was a sailor’s wife and mother of four children, who was forced to leave their home in London’s East End in 1813. Like many sailor’s wives she supported her family alone, unsure of whether her husband would return from sea. The Poor Laws made local parishes responsible for the care of poor residents, but they could be forced to move if there was insufficient evidence that they were born in that parish, worked there, or had married someone with the right to live there. 

Learn more about the Poor Laws here. 

Discovering more about women throughout history adds to the richness of our understanding about the past. It also prompts us to make connections between these individuals and our own experiences today, thus heightening our awareness of the gender inequalities and prejudices that persist. 

Consider using AncestryClassroom to mark Women’s History Month in your school, asking students to research family members or local figures, and write short biographies about their diverse lives, backgrounds and experiences.