Stella Isaacs, Marchioness of Reading and Baroness Swanborough (1894-1971)

Stella Isaacs was the first woman peer to be introduced in the House of Lords, taking her seat ahead of Baroness Wootton on 21 October 1958.

She was founder of the Women's Voluntary Service which did sterling work throughout the Second World War with refugees, bombing victims and the armed forces, as well as playing a major part in the evacuation of thousands of city children.

She also served as vice-chair of the Imperial Relations Trust, a governor of the BBC, and chaired the Home Office Advisory Council on Commonwealth Immigration. She was appointed DBE in 1941 and GBE in 1944.