A new community-led walking route developed by the Ardwick Education Partnership CiC, in collaboration with local groups and The University of Manchester, is uncovering the hidden histories of women from Ardwick whose contributions have often been overlooked. 

On 27 October, around 20 people gathered on Wadeson Street to take part in the two-mile walk, which explores stories of activism, resilience and social change. 

The idea began with University researchers based in the Ellen Wilkinson Building, whose work on the life of Ellen Wilkinson revealed that she had been born in Ardwick.  

This discovery inspired a wider exploration of the area’s other notable women and grew into a partnership involving a local school, church, artists, activists and residents from an extra-care facility. Together, they asked: Who else from this area has been overlooked? 

The route begins at Ellen Wilkinson’s birthplace and ends at the building that bears her name on campus, passing through the Brunswick estate and surrounding neighbourhoods. Along the way, walkers learn about women including Louise Da-Cacodia, Khiara Keating, Yomi Mambu, Sylvia Pankhurst, Dr Sylvia Sham, Altheda the Great, Megan Lloyd George, Lydia Becker, Ann Hunt and Elizabeth Yarwood. 

Participants included students, school pupils, residents, office workers and academics, many of whom said they were surprised by the area’s rich but little-known heritage. One attendee shared: “I’ve lived here all my life, and I never knew half of this. These women deserve to be remembered.” 

A downloadable map of the route will soon be available for residents, schools and visitors to follow, offering a lasting resource for education, reflection and community engagement. 

This project invites people to see Ardwick not as a place left behind but as a place of resilience, activism and community strength. It shows what can be achieved when universities truly listen and collaborate, creating research that is co-produced with local people, rooted in lived experience and shaped by a shared commitment to justice. 

The initiative formed part of the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) Festival of Social Science 2025, celebrating research that makes a real difference in communities. 

• Find out more about ESRC Festival of Social Science here.