The Friends of Sophia Goulden have announced that a maquette of the statue they wish to see installed in the island is now on display.

The 18-inch model of Sophia Goulden and her daughter, world famous suffragette Emmeline Pankhurst, was produced by British sculptor Sean Hedges-Quinn.

Mr Hedges-Quinn has previously produced a statue of working class suffragette Alice Hawkins, which was unveiled in Leicester on February 4, 2018.

The Friends of Sophia Goulden launched its campaign in 2016 to ‘highlight the work she did in campaigning for social change, and the undoubted influence this had on her family – a legacy that helped change the world.’

Sophia was born Sophia Jane Craine on the Isle of Man in 1833.

In September 2018, a blue plaque in her honour was unveiled at her former home on Strathallan Crescent in Douglas.

The group is still campaigning for the statue to be unveiled here, with the proposed placement site of Laxey.

On their JustGiving page, they said: ‘There is a worldwide lack of statues of women of note, but even more so in the Isle of Man.

‘We feel that it’s vitally important to rectify the imbalance, and that a statue of Sophia would increase awareness of the work she did, and remind people that they too can make a difference.’

You can read more and donate to the campaign here: https://buff.ly/3k7bRvE

The model of the proposed statue is now on public display in the Visitor Centre at the Tynwald building.