Chelmsford’s first woman MP, Vicky Ford, has been taking part in many activities to celebrate 100 years since women were first given the right to vote in the UK.

The centenary day started with all women MPs gathering for a photo with the Prime Minister and was followed by a meeting of the 67 Conservative women MPs.

There are many events planned for the centenary year including a Women’s March to coincide with International Women’s Day.

Local projects are also being encouraged and grants will be available for community projects.

The centenary of woman getting the vote coincides with 2018 being the year of engineering. Mrs Ford is one of only two women on the House of Commons Science and Technology Select Committee.

She has championed the need to create opportunities for women in Science, Engineering and Maths for many years and has been meeting representatives from the Institute of Engineering and Technology to explore ways to help promote women in science during the Vote100 celebrations.

Mrs Ford said “It is a huge honour to be a women MP in this very special year. In many parts of the world people still do not have the right to vote in free elections. We should never take our right to vote for granted or forget those who fought for it.

“We have come a long way. Ten years ago there were just 17 Conservative women MPs now there are 67. I hope that this year will encourage more women to get involved in politics and in other careers.”