Susan Lilian Primrose Cunliffe-Lister, Dowager Countess of Swinton, Baroness Masham of Ilton, (''née'' Sinclair; born ) is a

crossbench 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 ...

member of the

House of Lords The House of Lords, also known as the House of Peers, is the Bicameralism, upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Membership is by Life peer, appointment, Hereditary peer, heredity or Lords Spiritual, official function. Like the ...

. She is the senior life peer. She is Vice President of the Snowdon Trust, founded by the

Earl of Snowdon Earl of Snowdon is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created in 1961, together with the subsidiary title of Viscount Linley, of Nymans in the County of Sussex, by Queen Elizabeth II for her then brother-in-law, Antony Armstron ...

, which provides grants and scholarships for students with disabilities.

Personal life

She was the daughter of Major Sir Ronald Sinclair, 8th Baronet. She was educated at the Heathfield School and

London Polytechnic , mottoeng = The Lord is our Strength , type = Public , established = 1838: Royal Polytechnic Institution 1891: Polytechnic-Regent Street 1970: Polytechnic of Central London 1992: University of Westminster , endowment = £5.1 million ...

. In 1959 she married Lord Masham (1937–2006), who became

Earl of Swinton Earl of Swinton is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created in 1955 for the prominent Conservative Party (UK), Conservative politician Philip Cunliffe-Lister, 1st Earl of Swinton, Philip Cunliffe-Lister, 1st Viscount Swinton ...

in 1972. By this marriage, she became entitled to the styles ''Lady Masham'', and later ''Countess of Swinton''. 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 ...

in 1970 as the Baroness Masham of Ilton, of

Masham Masham ( ) is a market town and civil parish in the Harrogate district of North Yorkshire, England. It had a population of 1,205 at the 2011 census. Etymology In Wensleydale, on the western bank of the River Ure, the name derives from the An ...

in the

North Riding The North Riding of Yorkshire is a subdivision of Yorkshire, England, alongside York, the East Riding and West Riding. The riding's highest point is at Mickle Fell with 2,585 ft (788 metres). From the Restoration it was used as ...

of the

County of York Yorkshire ( ; abbreviated Yorks), formally known as the County of York, is a historic county in northern England and by far the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its large area in comparison with other English counties, functions have ...

. She and her husband were one of the few couples to both hold titles in their own right. Lord and Lady Swinton adopted two children. She was widowed in 2006. She is a prominent

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

convert and a patron of the

Margaret Beaufort Institute of Theology The Margaret Beaufort Institute of Theology is a Roman Catholic theological college in Cambridge, England. The institute was founded in 1993 to provide religious and theological education to Catholic laywomen: it now offers theological education t ...

Disability campaigner

She was

disabled Disability is the experience of any condition that makes it more difficult for a person to do certain activities or have equitable access within a given society. Disabilities may be cognitive, developmental, intellectual, mental, physical, se ...

in a riding accident in 1958, and subsequently became a champion for causes related to disability. She was the subject of '' This Is Your Life'' in February 1976 when she was surprised by

Eamonn Andrews Eamonn Andrews, (19 December 1922 – 5 November 1987) was an Irish radio and television presenter, employed primarily in the United Kingdom from the 1950s to the 1980s. From 1960 to 1964 he chaired the Radio Éireann Authority (now the RTÉ A ...

in the foyer of the De Vere hotel in

Kensington Kensington is a district in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea in the West End of London, West of Central London. The district's commercial heart is Kensington High Street, running on an east–west axis. The north-east is taken up b ...

, London. She is an active member of the House of Lords, where she continues to be known as the Baroness Masham of Ilton, a title she holds in her own right. She takes a particular interest in issues surrounding

disability Disability is the experience of any condition that makes it more difficult for a person to do certain activities or have equitable access within a given society. Disabilities may be Cognitive disability, cognitive, Developmental disability, dev ...

health Health, according to the World Health Organization, is "a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease and infirmity".World Health Organization. (2006)''Constitution of the World Health Organiza ...

and

penal reform Prison reform is the attempt to improve conditions inside prisons, improve the effectiveness of a penal system, or implement alternatives to incarceration. It also focuses on ensuring the reinstatement of those whose lives are impacted by crimes. ...

. She opened the factory for Nordis Signs, part of the

Kier Group Kier Group plc is a British construction, services and property group active in building and civil engineering, support services, and the Private Finance Initiative. Founded in 1928 in Stoke-on-Trent it initially specialised in concrete enginee ...

, in

Northampton Northampton () is a market town and civil parish in the East Midlands of England, on the River Nene, north-west of London and south-east of Birmingham. The county town of Northamptonshire, Northampton is one of the largest towns in England; ...

, which employs a majority-disabled workforce. She continues to run the Masham Riding Centre in

North Yorkshire North Yorkshire is the largest ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county (lieutenancy area) in England, covering an area of . Around 40% of the county is covered by National parks of the United Kingdom, national parks, including most of ...

. In 2011, she was awarded an Honorary Fellowship by the

Royal College of Nursing The Royal College of Nursing (RCN) is a registered trade union in the United Kingdom for those in the profession of nursing. It was founded in 1916, receiving its royal charter in 1928. Queen Elizabeth II was the patron until her death in 2022. ...

. Baroness Masham of Ilton has long been a supporter of the charity Disability Action Yorkshire, becoming Patron in 2011. She was the founder of the

Spinal Injuries Association Spine or spinal may refer to: Science Biology * Vertebral column, also known as the backbone * Dendritic spine, a small membranous protrusion from a neuron's dendrite * Thorns, spines, and prickles, needle-like structures in plants * Spine (zoolo ...

, of which she is president.

Paralympic career

Masham competed in several

Paralympic Games The Paralympic Games or Paralympics, also known as the ''Games of the Paralympiad'', is a periodic series of international multisport events involving athletes with a range of physical disabilities, including impaired muscle power and impaire ...

. At the inaugural Games in Rome in 1960, she won swimming gold and silver in the 25m breaststroke complete class 2 and 25m backstroke complete class 2 respectively, as well as bronze in the table tennis, women's doubles class B. Four years later, at the

1964 Tokyo Paralympics The , originally known as the 13th International Stoke Mandeville Games and also known as Paralympic Tokyo 1964,

, she won gold in the table tennis women's doubles B alongside

Gwen Buck Gwen Buck BEM (1929–13 February 2005) was a British Paralympic athlete who competed in several sporting disciplines. She won gold medals in table tennis, lawn bowls, and swimming, and entered several athletics events across four Paralympic Ga ...

, and silver in the women's singles B. In the pool, Masham won three silver medals, in the 25m freestyle prone complete C2, 25m freestyle supine complete C2, and 25m breaststroke complete C2. At the 1968 Tel Aviv Paralympics, Masham added table tennis silver in the women's doubles B with Buck, and bronze in the women's singles B.

References

Sources

*
Masham Riding Centre

2nd Earl of Swinton, DL (1937-2006) – Google ''Peerage News'' Group

External links