My mum, Eileen Jarvis, who has died aged 92, devoted her life to fighting for the rights of women and children, first with the women’s liberation movement and as a volunteer for Women’s Aid refuges, and then as a social worker in three London boroughs.
Her passion for social work stemmed from the poverty she had witnessed growing up in north Wales, as well as the tragic high-profile case of Maria Colwell, a seven-year-old killed by her stepfather in 1973. While raising her own daughters, Eileen studied for O- and A-levels at evening classes, supported by her husband, Harry. After qualifying as a social worker in the mid-70s, she worked in Tower Hamlets, Southwark and Wandsworth.
