Preston City Council throws its weight behind vision to bring Edith Rigby statue to city

Preston suffragette Edith Rigby, second left, with fellow suffragette Eleanor Beatrice Higgginson, third from left. Both women spent time in Holloway Prison

A motion brought before councillors sought to “wholeheartedly support” an on-going project “to fund a statue of Edith Rigby to be placed at a suitable location in Preston”.

Time to honour Preston suffragette Edith Rigby with statue

Addressing councillors coun Morgan said: “I think it’s fitting to commemorate this powerful woman with a statue.”

Supporting the motion coun Pauline Brown, leader of the Liberal Democrat group, told members that Edith Rigby was “one of my heroines”.

She added: “She was passionate about women’s rights and social welfare.

“She started a school in Preston and she didn’t just give them lessons she treated them to days out. She was also the first woman to ride a bike in Preston and apparently she had all sorts of abuse at her because she wore trousers to ride her bike.”

Former Preston mayoress Trisha Rollo is spearheading a campaign to bring a memorial to Edith Rigby to her hometown of Preston.

While the vision is only in its initial stages, ideas include a statue to Edith Rigby sitting down on a bench, perhaps in Winckley Square where she spent most of her life.