YOUNG women have attended the unveiling of a statue marking the life of a prominent suffragist.

Members of Slough Youth Parliament, Aik Saath, and the Slough Women’s Forum joined the Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan and Theresa May as they opened a statue of Millicent Fawcett, in Parliament Square on April 24.

The bronze statue, crafted by sculptor Gillian Wearing, is the first statue of a woman to be placed in Parliament Square. It was commissioned to mark 100 years since women gained the right to vote and features Fawcett holding a banner reading “courage calls to courage everywhere.”

Following the unveiling, the students ended the day with a reception at the Foreign Office.

Alaa Fawaz, 16, member of the UK Youth Parliament for Slough, said: “The atmosphere was quite amazing. It really made me feel powerful. It was inspirational and really did move me.

"It made me think this could be you – you could be bringing about change, just like this phenomenal woman. To have Millicent Fawcett’s statue facing parliament sends out such a great message to young women.”