15/10/2026
, The Lady Chief Justice joined the unveiling of an English Heritage blue plaque honouring Gertrude Tuckwell, whose appointment as one of the first female magistrates helped pave the way for generations of women in the justice system.
At the ceremony, the Lady Chief Justice said:
“Gertrude Tuckwell understood that being the first matters most when those who come first ensure that they do not also become the last. She set the wheels in motion for the diverse, modern magistracy from which our society benefits today.
"Diversity in the magistracy is not only something to celebrate in itself: it is vital to connect courts with the society that magistrates serve, to strengthen public confidence and to bring a breadth of experience to judicial decision-making.”
Read more about Gertrude Tuckwell,and the event on our website: https://www.judiciary.uk/lady-chief-justice-attends-ceremony-as-blue-plaque-is-unveiled-for-pioneering-female-magistrate