Caroline Roberts-Cherry, the Managing Director of Saffron Cherry Productions has been named as the new chair of the Pankhurst Trust.
Her indie has previously produced Emmeline Pankhurst: Making of a Militant for BBC Four.
The organisation provides vital women’s services and, through its museum, celebrates the legacy of the suffragette movement and its relevance today.
“We want to play our part in making Greater Manchester a safer, kinder and more equal city for women and girls, recognising that we first have to address the fact that the pandemic we have been living through has disproportionately affected women,” she explained.
“We want to get back to normal, but to aim for this normal to be better.”
Roberts-Cherry is also an Ambassador for Smart Works Manchester and a trustee of the Liverpool Everyman & Playhouse Theatres and is a former trustee of the Royal Exchange Theatre, Manchester.
“What we have achieved over the last six years with Louise Sutherland at the helm has been incredible, the Trust was a fledgling organisation and she helped us to fly,” added Gail Heath, CEO of the Pankhurst Trust.
“We now warmly welcome Caroline to the Pankhurst Trust, and are very excited about the next part of the journey. It’s one that begins with great challenges as we emerge from the Covid-19 crisis, but is also a pivotal moment for the Pankhurst Centre with our new permanent exhibition set to completely reimagine the visitor experience and the role that we have to play as an organisation.”
The trust is based in the former home of Emmeline Pankhurst, and Roberts-Cherry takes up the position at the end of the month, ahead of its re-opening to the public.
“I’m inspired to come from a city that is proud of its radical history and has a legacy of strong women,” she continued.
“The Pankhurst Centre is at the heart of this and gives us a very real opportunity to use this to encourage the changemakers of the future and to aim to achieve the equality for women and girls that I believe makes society a better place for everyone. To reflect the pride we have for this heritage, and its place in the global story of the fight for equality, we also want to see this building conserved and restored in the future, a campaign that I am honoured to lead.”
