By 1920, Merseyside women had seen their situation and their region undergo several permanent changes. Geographical expansion had brought new districts to the east and west into the city boundaries, while cross-river transport continued to open up the Wirral. The local political map had also altered. In 1918 the extension of the parliamentary franchise to all men and most women over 30 quadrupled the electorate to 344, 816. There were also more subtle alterations. Many of the ‘old families’ who dominated the political and social circles of pre-war Merseyside found that heavy taxes and changing social mores altered their position. ‘The erasure of a traditional way of life’ occurred as values such as deference gave way to a new social order. Position was no longer enough to secure political power.

Women were equally affected by these changes. Many who had devoted much of the two decades to suffrage campaigns were now enfranchised, and seeking a place in the new political order with little inclination to continue to work for an equal franchise. Some women found their social position improved. Domestic service began to decline with ‘man girls’ finding positions for themselves in the new service industries, or as professionals such as teachers or clerks. Other women suffered as unemployment swept the region. By 1921, the local branch of the National Unemployed Workers’ Movement (NUWM) was organising regular demonstrations to mobilise the estimated ninth of the local population seeking work. Women suffered too from a strong local feeling that they had taken men's jobs. Despite their participation in innumerable demonstrations, they were unable to gain a foothold in the local leadership of the NUWM.

The three models of women's political activity outlined in the introduction to this book had seen mixed achievements by 1920, with many short-lived victories. At this point, with thirty years of women's political activities described, it is worth considering if any conclusions can be drawn as to which proved most successful once the vote was won. Of all the organisations discussed, the WSPU with its ‘sex-class’ model that excluded men from all positions and gave women complete freedom in arranging their work had proved most successful at bringing large numbers of women into political work.