Join us on International Women’s Day for a deep dive into the Archives of St Margaret's House, exploring and celebrating the legacies of the women who have helped shaped SMH - from the Founders of 1889, to the staff, artists and participants of today!
In 1889, St Margaret's House opened its doors as one of the world's first women's Settlement Houses, offering subsidised accommodation for working women in the East End. As the home for the Bethnal Green Ladies Committee, St Margaret's House embarked on pioneering social engagement work led by the women who lived in the house. Over 130 years later, we continue to create innovative work through our Creative Health Tree approach - none of which would be possible without the incredible contributions made by East End women for over a century. We stand on the shoulders of the women who came before us - St Margaret's House's History, is Women's History.
For Women's History Month 2026, we invite you to explore the rich histories held within our archives, uncovering the stories of the last century and giving them new life as we look to fortify our history across the SMH site. Your explorations will help shape the retelling of our history for decades.
Joining our archival exploration is historian Dr Lucinda Mathews-Jones - an expert on the British University Settlement Movement. We have been working with Lucinda over the last year to better understand the early history of SMH as a Settlement House and we are very fortunate to have her with us for the Women's History Month event!
We also want to offer creative avenues for heritage exploration, so we will be providing the opportunity to photocopy any of our archival material, so that you may turn it into your own Women's History Month zine or collage!
We are on a mission to learn more about our history, and the ways in which St Margaret's House has contributed towards the social make-up of the East End, and we are asking for your help in making this possible.
The workshop will run for three hours - you are welcome to come along for the whole event, where you can meet other members of the local community, or you can pop in and have a browse of our archives for just a short while - the choice is yours!
There will be light refreshments from the Gallery Cafe on offer, free of charge.
Contact: If you have any questions regarding this event, please email programming@stmargaretshouse.org.uk
Venue: The Mulberry Hall at St Margaret's House, 21 Old Ford Road — E2 9PL
Access: If you have any access needs of which we should be aware, please get in touch with us on 020 8980 2092 or email emily@stmargaretshouse.org.uk so we can arrange this for you.
Date: Sunday 8th March
Time: 2–5pm
Tickets: Free