Sheffield’s Trailblazing Women Mechanics: The Legacy of Gwenda’s Garage

Gwenda’s Garage was founded in 1985 in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, by three women mechanics: Ros Wollen (aka Roz), Annette Williams, and Ros Wall.

Faced with difficulty finding employment in a male-dominated field, they established their own repair workshop.

Gwenda’s Garage opened in May 1985 and was named in honour of Gwenda Stewart (1894-1990), a racing driver who set multiple motorcycle and motor car records in the 1920s and 1930s.

The garage offered typical services like repairs, servicing, breakdown assistance, welding, and bodywork. However, Ros, Roz, and Annette focused equally on empowering women.
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In 2023, we funded Out of the Archive to produce a script-in-hand musical telling the story of Gwenda’s Garage as part of our Everyday Heritage Grants: Celebrating Working Class Histories.

In November 2023, two performances of Gwenda’s Garage were held at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield. The show sold out immediately and received an exceptional audience response.

Alongside the production, Out of the Archive created an exhibition and a public workshop to memorialise Gwenda’s Garage, coinciding with the 20th anniversary of the repeal of Section 28 in England. The exhibition was seen by 130,000 people.

Find out more about our Everyday Heritage Grants ➡️ https://bit.ly/EverydayHeritageGrants
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