Phyllis Stedman, Baroness Stedman,

OBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

(née Adams; 14 July 1916 – 8 June 1996) was a British politician who briefly served as a

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. Born in Peterborough, Stedman attended Peterborough County Grammar School, then worked as a librarian in her home town, and served in the

National Fire Service The National Fire Service (NFS) was the single fire service created in Great Britain in 1941 during the Second World War; a separate National Fire Service (Northern Ireland) was created in 1942. The NFS was created in August 1941 by the amalga ...

in Derbyshire during World War II. After marrying Harry Stedman in 1941, she helped run his family horticultural business.Phyllis Stedman profile
'' Oxford Dictionary of National Biography''; accessed 26 July 2014. In 1946, Stedman was elected to the Soke of Peterborough County Council, representing the Labour Party, serving on it and its successors until 1976. She was the Prospective Parliamentary Candidate for

Hampstead Hampstead () is an area in London, which lies northwest of Charing Cross, and extends from Watling Street, the A5 road (Roman Watling Street) to Hampstead Heath, a large, hilly expanse of parkland. The area forms the northwest part of the Lon ...

before the 1951 general election, but withdrew due to illness. She was appointed an

Officer of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

(OBE) in the

1965 New Year Honours The New Year Honours 1965 were appointments in many of the Commonwealth realms of Queen Elizabeth II to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of those countries. They were announced in supplements to the ''Lond ...

. At the 1966 general election, Stedman was the election agent for Michael Ward. When it became apparent that the result was very close, Stedman requested repeated recounts. After the seventh recount - a record which stands to this day - Ward was defeated by the incumbent,

Harmar Nicholls Harmar Harmar-Nicholls, Baron Harmar-Nicholls (1 November 1912 – 15 September 2000), known as Sir Harmar Nicholls, 1st Baronet, from 1960 to 1975, was a British Conservative Party politician. Early life and career Harmar Nicholls was born in ...

, by three votes. In 1972, Stedman was appointed to the Peterborough

New Town New is an adjective referring to something recently made, discovered, or created. New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz Albums and EPs * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, ...

Development Corporation. On 25 June 1974, she was created a

life peer In the United Kingdom, life peers are appointed members of the peerage whose titles cannot be inherited, in contrast to hereditary peers. In modern times, life peerages, always created at the rank of baron, are created under the Life Peerages ...

as Baroness Stedman, of

Longthorpe Longthorpe is an area of the city of Peterborough, in the unparished area of Peterborough, in the Peterborough district, in the ceremonial county of Cambridgeshire, England. Located west from the city centre, the area covers . For electoral purp ...

in the

City of Peterborough The City of Peterborough is a unitary authority district with city status in the ceremonial county of Cambridgeshire, England. The area is named after its largest settlement, Peterborough but also covers a wider area of outlying villages and ha ...

, to bolster the Labour Party in the House of Lords, and was appointed as a

whip A whip is a tool or weapon designed to strike humans or other animals to exert control through pain compliance or fear of pain. They can also be used without inflicting pain, for audiovisual cues, such as in equestrianism. They are generally e ...

. In January 1979, she was appointed Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Sport and Water Resources. When the Labour Party lost the 1979 general election, she was moved to become their spokesperson on the environment. Stedman defected to the Social Democratic Party (SDP) on its formation in 1981. She became the party's chief whip in the Lords in 1986. Most of the SDP peers opposed the party's merger with the Liberal Party in 1988. She led them into the continuing Social Democratic Party and served as its leader in the Lords. When that party dissolved in 1990, she became a

crossbencher A crossbencher is an independent or minor party member of some legislatures, such as the British House of Lords and the Parliament of Australia. They take their name from the crossbenches, between and perpendicular to the government and oppositi ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Stedman of Longthorpe, Phyllis Stedman, Baroness 1916 births 1996 deaths Officers of the Order of the British Empire Councillors in Cambridgeshire Labour Party (UK) life peers Life peeresses created by Elizabeth II People from Peterborough Social Democratic Party (UK) life peers Place of death missing English librarians British women librarians British firefighters Social Democratic Party (UK, 1988) peers Women in firefighting 20th-century British women politicians Women councillors in England