Britain was transformed by the huge social and economic changes which followed the Second World War. Looking back at the period between 1956 and 1974, it is easy to imagine that life for teenage girls suddenly became a whirl of mini skirts, pop music and women’s lib.
But how accurate is this?
The pill was revolutionary...but it was a revolution that took a long time. Married women could take the pill from 1961 but it wasn’t until 1974 that it was made free and available to all, and there could still be barriers to access for some women.
The law was starting to recognise women as the equals of men. From 1969 it became easier for women to get divorced. Abortion was legalised – in some circumstances – in 1967.
Some young women were starting to leave their parents’ home for work rather than marriage. A good education could help girls get a good job, but not all girls had an equal chance. It was harder for girls from poorer families to turn their hard work at school into a good career.
Any teenage girl with a little money to spend was spoiled for choice in the new department stores, record shops and coffee shops.
More girls started to go to university, and some of these began to get involved with the progressive politics so associated with teenagers in the seventies. Others were politically involved via trades unions.
Life was changing for some young women, but not for all. These stories that follow show what life was really like for a series of teenage girls growing up in Britain in the fifties and sixties.
Credits:
All images: Candice Purwin