Forward Together recollections by Professor Alan Hughes

In our first Forward Together spotlight, we honour Professor Alan Hughes, whose arrival at Sidney Sussex coincided with one of the College’s most defining turning points: the vote to admit women.

He recalls not only the drama of that historic vote – one Fellow resigning with a theatrical hurling of keys across the Old Library table – but more importantly, the clarity of purpose that carried the decision forward.

The debates in 1974, he reflects, were less about the principle of gender equality – which was barely contested – and more about hand-wringing over ironing boards, washing lines, sports teams, and mixed staircases. Yet behind the scenes, a powerful coalition of Fellows, including Donald Green, John Reddick, and Derek Beales, pushed for change with courage and vision.

Sidney didn’t just follow the tide – it chose what Alan calls the “Fast Second” strategy: entering the era of co-education smartly and swiftly, building on the lessons of first movers like King’s, Clare, and Churchill. And we reaped the rewards: brilliant men and women students, matching Fellowship appointments, and eventually, the election of Sandra Dawson as the first woman Head of a formerly all-male Cambridge College.

For Alan, the impact was deeply personal. As Tutor to many of Sidney’s earliest women undergraduates, he and his wife Jean witnessed their brilliance – and the silent pressures many bore. He speaks with admiration and tenderness about their strength, and the mementos they still cherish from those early years.

He leaves us with an appeal: “Sidney’s challenge now is to continue to identify and resolve gender inequalities which persist, but to do that within a wider set of unequal opportunities in our society.”

We rose to the challenge then. We can, and must, rise again.

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