Helena Kennedy, Baroness Kennedy of The Shaws
The Baroness Kennedy of The Shaws | |
|---|---|
 Kennedy signing The Convention on Modern Liberty in January 2009 | |
| Born | Helena Ann Kennedy 12 May 1950 |
| Nationality | British |
| Occupation(s) | Barrister, television presenter |
| Employer(s) | Mansfield College, Oxford; BBC |
| Political party | Labour Party |
| Spouse(s) | Iain Louis Hutchison; 2 children |
| Partner(s) | Iain Mitchell (1978–84); 1 child |
| Children | Keir Kennedy Mitchell Clio Kennedy Hutchison Roland Kennedy Hutchison |
| Website | www |
Helena Ann Kennedy, Baroness Kennedy of The Shaws, QC, FRSA (born 12 May 1950),[1] is a British barrister, broadcaster, and Labour member of the House of Lords. Lady Kennedy of The Shaws, as she is properly styled, is a former chair of the Human Genetics Commission, which advises Her Majesty's Government on ethical, social, and legal issues arising from developments in genetic science. [citation needed]
Background
Lady Kennedy was born in Glasgow to a devoutly Roman Catholic family. She is one of four sisters born to Joshua Patrick and Mary Veronica (née Jones) Kennedy, both committed Labour activists. Her father, a printer with the Daily Record, was a trade union leader.[1] She attended Holyrood Secondary School in Glasgow, where she was appointed Head Girl. Kennedy still regularly attends Mass and professes that her Catholicism "remains very much part of who I am", even though she eschews its more traditional values. She went on to study Law at London's Council of Legal Education.[1]
Legal career
Among her many cases, Kennedy acted as junior counsel for child murderer Myra Hindley during the latter's 1974 trial for plotting to escape from Holloway.[2]
Personal life
Her first partner was the actor Iain Mitchell, with whom she lived from 1978 until 1984, and by whom she has a son. In 1986, Kennedy married Dr Iain Louis Hutchison (a surgeon), with whom she has a daughter and a son.[1]
Academia
Lady Kennedy was elected principal of Mansfield College, Oxford in July 2010 (which office she has served since September 2011).[3] She has received numerous academic awards, including:
- Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts (FRSA)
- Fellow of the City and Guilds of London Institute (FCGI)
- Member of the Académie Universelle des Cultures (Paris)
- Honorary Fellow, Royal College of Psychiatrists, 2005
- Honorary Fellow, Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health, 2005
- Honorary Fellow, Institute of Advanced Legal Studies
- Honorary Fellow, University of Cambridge, 2010
- Honorary Fellow, School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), 2011
- Honorary Doctorate of Law, Plymouth University, 2012[4]
Broadcasting
- Creator: Blind Justice, BBC TV, 1987
- Presenter: Heart of the Matter, BBC TV, 1987
- After Dark, Channel 4 and BBC4, 1987–2003
- She presented many editions of this series, including the infamous "drunk Oliver Reed" episode, where the actor verbally insulted and attempted to kiss feminist Kate Millett
- Presenter: Raw Deal on Medical Negligence, BBC TV, 1989
- Presenter: The Trial of 'Lady Chatterley's Lover', BBC Radio 4, 1990
- Presenter: Time Gentlemen, Please, BBC Scotland, 1994 (Winner, Television Programme Award category, 1994 Industrial Journalism Awards)
- Commissioner, BAFTA Inquiry into the future of the BBC, 1990
Politics
Lady Kennedy rebels against her party whip in the House of Lords more frequently than any other Labour Peer, having a dissent rate of 33.3%.[5] She was Chair of Charter 88 (1992–97) and is closely affiliated to the educational charity Common Purpose.
Public leadership
- President, Helena Kennedy Foundation
- President of the Board the Governors of the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS)[6]
- President, Women of the Year Lunch (2010–2015)[7]
- Chair, JUSTICE
- Chair of the Board of Governors for the United World College of the Atlantic
- President, Medical Aid for Palestinians
- Patron, Burma Campaign UK, the London-based group campaigning for human rights and democracy in Burma
- Member of the Board of Independent News and Media
- Trustee, KPMG Foundation
- Chancellor of Oxford Brookes University (1994–2001)
- Chair, British Council (1998–2004)
- Chair, Human Genetics Commission (1998–2007)
- President of the National Children's Bureau (1998–2005)
- Kennedy chaired the Power Commission (November 2005 – March 2006), which examined the problem of democratic disengagement in the United Kingdom. A report was produced which highlighted the "Myth of Apathy" and the lack of political engagement
- Chair of Power 2010, which aimed to carry forward the concepts behind the Power Commission into the UK 2010 General Election
- Member of the World Bank Institute's External Advisory Council
- Member of the board of the British Museum
- Vice-President of the Haldane Society
- Vice-President of the Association of Women Barristers
- Patron, Institute for Learning (IfL) http://www.ifl.ac.uk
- Patron, Liberty
- Patron, UNLOCK, The National Association of Ex-Offenders
- Patron, Debt Doctors Foundation UK (DD-UK)
- Patron, Tower Hamlets Summer University
- Patron, Rights Watch (UK)
- Patron of SafeHands for Mothers, a UK-based charity whose mission is to improve maternal and newborn health by harnessing the power of the visual, through the production of films.[8]
- Chair, Howard League's Commission of Inquiry into Violence in Penal Institutions for Young People (the final report, Banged Up, Beaten Up, Cutting Up, published in 1995)
- Chair, Reading Borough Council's Commission of Inquiry into the health, environmental and safety aspects of the Atomic Weapons Establishment at Aldermaston (final report Secrecy versus Safety, published in 1994)
- Chair, Royal Colleges of Pathologists' and of Pædiatrics' Inquiry into Sudden Infant Death (producing a protocol for the investigation of such deaths in 2004)
- Member of the Foreign Policy Centre's Advisory Council
- Formerly UK member of the International Bar Association's Task Force on Terrorism
- As Commissioner of the National Commission for Education, she chaired a committee on widening participation in further education and the Commission's seminal report, Learning Works, published in 1997.
Honours
- Created a Life Peer, as Baroness Kennedy of The Shaws, of Cathcart in the City of Glasgow on 27 October 1997[9]
Grand Cross, Ordine al Merito della Repubblica Italiana (2004)
Commandeur, Ordre des Palmes Académiques (2006)
Bibliography
- Eve was Framed: Women and British Justice, 1993; ISBN 0-09-922441-0
- Just Law: The changing face of justice and why it matters to us, 2004; ISBN 0-09-945833-0
References
- ^ a b c d Wroe, Nicholas (27 March 2004). "A radical in the House". The Guardian. Retrieved 2 March 2011.
- ^ "One of Your Own: The Life and Death of Myra Hindley", by Carol Ann Lee (2012).
- ^ "Baroness Helena Kennedy QC elected next Principal of Mansfield College", University of Oxford Mansfield College, 13 April 2011.
- ^ http://www1.plymouth.ac.uk/graduation/honorarydegrees/honoraries2012/Pages/Baroness-Helena-Kennedy-QC.aspx
- ^ Rebel Lords — Current members The Public Whip
- ^ "2016: A Vision and Strategy for the Centennial" (p. 18), School of Oriental and African Studies, April 2010
- ^ Qureshi, Huma (17 October 2012). "Helena Kennedy: 'Women's struggles are not over'". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 6 May 2015.
- ^ "SafeHands for Mothers". SafeHands for Mothers. Retrieved 9 September 2014.
- ^ "No. 54934". The London Gazette. 30 October 1997.
External links
- Debrett's People of Today
- Helena Kennedy's home page
- Power Commission
- Helena Kennedy Foundation
- "Helena Kennedy Foundation, registered charity no. 1074025". Charity Commission for England and Wales.
| International | |
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| National | |
| People | |
| Other | |
- Use dmy dates from January 2012
- 1950 births
- Living people
- Scottish people of Irish descent
- People from Glasgow
- Scottish lawyers
- Scottish Roman Catholics
- Female life peers
- Labour Party (UK) life peers
- People associated with Oxford Brookes University
- People associated with SOAS, University of London
- Commandeurs of the Ordre des Palmes Académiques
- Trustees of the British Museum
- BBC television presenters
- People educated at Holyrood Secondary School
- Knights Grand Cross of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic
- British Queen's Counsel
- British legal writers
- Fellows of the Royal Society of Arts