Marcia Hutchinson | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 11 December 1962 |
| Political party | Labour (2016–2021) Independent (2021–present) |
| Education | Brasenose College, Oxford (BA) University of Law (LPC) |
Marcia Ann Hutchinson MBE (born 11 December 1962) is a British writer, and politician.
Marcia's parents were both part of the Windrush Generation of post-war migrants to the UK. She is the seventh of nine children, seven girls and two boys. Her younger sister Yvonne Hutchinson, who died in 2015, was a noted housing campaigner in Bradford. [1] Her four older siblings remained in Jamaica and her parents had five more children in Bradford in the 1960s. She grew up in Manningham, Bradford, a deprived area of the city. The family later moved to Newby Square, a notorious council estate which was demolished in 1987. [2] Marcia's father died aged 56 when she was 14 and her mother struggled to bring up five children as a single parent.
Marcia attended Belle Vue Girl's Comprehensive School in Bradford. She was the first pupil from the school to be admitted to Oxford University attending Brasenose College from 1982 - 1985 reading jurisprudence. [3] After attending the College of Law in Lancaster Gate, Marcia qualified as a solicitor in 1986 and worked for a number of firms specialising in Town and Country Planning, first In the City in London and then in Leeds.
After her two daughters were born Marcia changed careers and founded Primary Colours, a multicultural educational publishing and training company based in Huddersfield. [4] The company operated between 1997 - 2014 publishing a range of books and teaching packs as well as delivering Theatre in Education, INSET training on diversity and cultural diversity projects in schools and other educational settings around the country. These included The Journey, a teaching pack based on the stories of Windrush Migrants to Yorkshire published to mark the 50th Anniversary of the Empire Windrush arriving in the UK, with a foreword written by Paul Boateng MP. [4]
Going and Coming - a digital project and teaching pack which enabled children to record their family's migration stories, with a foreword written by Hilary Benn MP. [5]
The Adventures of Ottobah Cugoano - which told the story of an enslaved boy brought to the UK who campaigned against slavery. The Foreword for the pack was written by then Minister for Culture David Lammy MP. [6]
Did you Know? - A teaching pack documenting the contribution of Black and Asian asian people to the UK. The series was the brainchild of Headteacher Shazia Azhar MBE who became a director of Primary Colours and wrote a number of resources for the company. [7]
Marcia was awarded an MBE in the Queens Birthday Honours list in 2010 for services to cultural diversity. [8]
Marcia joined the Labour Party in 2016. In response to the underrepresentation of Black Councillors in the city (who in 2017 made up 12% of the population of the city but just 3% of councillors) she set up the Pipeline Project. [9] In 2021 three Pipeline Project Alumni including Marcia were elected as Labour Councillors.
She resigned in December 2021 because of the "toxic culture" of the ruling Labour group on the council. [10]
In May 2022 she appeared in The Guardian's Dining across the divide feature discussing attitudes to immigration and racism. [11]
As one half of Lila Cain (along with Kate Griffin) Marcia has written the historical novel The Blackbrids of St Giles which will be published by Simon & Schuster on 30th Jan 2025. A sequel will follow in 2026.
Her solo novel The Mercy Step, inspired by her early life in Bradford will be published by Cassava Republic in July 2025.
The Mercy Step was selected by The Observer / Guardian newspaper as of one of the best debut novels of 2025
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