Welcome to the SSLH

Register now to reserve your place at the John Halstead Memorial Lecture, Manchester 2026.

Founded in 1960, the Society for the Study of Labour History (SSLH) is the UK’s principal organisation dedicated to the study of labour history.

Membership is open to everyone who would like to learn more about labour history and heritage whether on a professional or amateur basis.

The SSLH publishes the journal the Labour History Review, organises regular conferences and actively promotes the preservation of historical resources connected to the labour movement.

What’s new

Events

John Halstead Memorial Lecture 2026

The fifth annual John Halstead Memorial Lecture will be delivered by Professor John Goodridge, President of the John Clare Society.  Organised by the Society for the Study of Labour History and taking place at the John Rylands Library, Manchester on Saturday 13 June 2026, the lecture will be titled ‘Reading by glow worm: the struggles… Continue reading John Halstead Memorial Lecture 2026

Commentary

St George’s Plateau, Liverpool: a place in labour history

Concluding our series on places in labour history, Greg Billam takes us to St George’s Plateau, where crowds have gathered for more than a century for key social, political, and cultural episodes in the city’s history. As visitors arrive at Liverpool’s Lime Street Station, they are greeted by the large, open public space that is… Continue reading St George’s Plateau, Liverpool: a place in labour history

Commentary

Miners’ Hall, Barnsley: a place in labour history

In our continuing series on places in labour history, Liz Wood introduces the headquarters building of the South Yorkshire Miners’ Association and its continuing importance now the coal industry has gone. It is impossible, even by night, to approach the town of Barnsley without seeing the inclined ramp of a surface drift mine or the… Continue reading Miners’ Hall, Barnsley: a place in labour history

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