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1Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minute2Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errors3Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitchesDame Stephanie Shirley, the software entrepreneur and philanthropist who arrived in Britain as a child refugee and built a company around flexible work, died on 9 August 2025, aged 91. She founded Freelance Programmers in 1962 with £6 and later directed much of her energy and wealth toward autism services, research and technology. Her use of the name “Steve” was a practical response to the discrimination women faced in business.
Who was Dame Stephanie Shirley?
Born Vera Stephanie Buchthal in Dortmund, Germany, in 1933, Shirley came to Britain in 1939 as an unaccompanied five-year-old on the Kindertransport, alongside her sister Renate. Their parents remained behind. Shirley and her sister were separated from them and grew up with foster parents in the West Midlands.
In her memoir, Let It Go, Shirley recalled the resolve that followed her arrival: “a simple resolution took root deep in my heart: I had to make sure that mine was a life worth saving.”
At school, mathematics was not offered to girls, so she secured permission to study the subject at a boys’ school. She later worked on early computers at the Post Office Research Station while studying in the evenings for a mathematics degree. In 1989–90 she became the first woman president of the British Computer Society.
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What company did Stephanie Shirley found?
Freelance Programmers began with £6
In 1962, Shirley founded Freelance Programmers from her dining table with £6. The company supplied software services and organized work so that many employees could work from home. This model opened professional opportunities to women, including those with caring responsibilities, at a time when conventional workplaces offered them fewer options.
Women formed nearly all of the company’s earliest workforce: Shirley’s official biography says 297 of its first 300 employees were women. The company eventually grew to a reported 8,500 employees and a valuation of nearly $3 billion, according to Shirley’s official website and the Oxford Internet Institute’s memorial. Her official biography says the employee-ownership structure made more than 70 staff millionaires. These are reported institutional figures, not independently reconciled financial statements.
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Why was Stephanie Shirley known as Steve?
Shirley said business letters sent under her own name were ignored or met with hostility. Her husband, Derek, suggested she sign them with the family nickname Steve. Using a male-coded name helped her get a hearing in a male-dominated industry; it was a way to confront a barrier, not a claim that she was someone else.
How did her business success shape her philanthropy?
After retiring from business in 1993, Shirley focused on philanthropy, especially autism and information technology. Her son Giles was autistic and died aged 35 in 1998. His experience informed her commitment, but her work grew into a broad programme of services, research and institutional support.
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Autism services and research
- Kingwood: Shirley founded the service in 1994. It is now called Autism at Kingwood.
- Prior’s Court: She helped establish the specialist school, which opened in 1999. Prior’s Court reports that she donated £15 million to acquire and establish it. She described the aim as addressing the shortage of appropriate provision and offering specialist education and support to pupils severely affected by autism.
- Autistica: Shirley founded the autism research charity in 2004. Autistica continues to fund and support research.
Technology, giving and public service
Shirley supported the Worshipful Company of Information Technologists in 1992 and was the founding donor of the Oxford Internet Institute in 2001. Oxford says the Shirley Scholars Fund was launched in her honour in 2022. She also served as the UK’s Ambassador for Philanthropy in 2009–10.
Her official website says she gave almost £70 million to good causes. The Shirley Foundation, which made grants across her philanthropic interests, spent out in 2018. The approximate giving total is an official-site figure, not an independently reconciled lifetime account. Shirley described her approach this way: “Giving is a social and cultural activity, not merely a financial transaction.”
What honours did Stephanie Shirley receive?
- She was appointed a Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire (DBE) in 2000.
- In 2017, she became a Member of the Order of the Companions of Honour.
- She was the first woman president of the British Computer Society, serving from 1989 to 1990.
When did Dame Stephanie Shirley die?
Shirley died on Saturday 9 August 2025, aged 91, after a short illness. The Oxford Internet Institute published its memorial on 12 August 2025.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Sources and further reading
Key biographical details and institutional milestones are recorded in the Oxford Internet Institute memorial. Her official site provides her biography and legacy information. Readers who want Shirley’s own account can look for her memoir, Let It Go: My Extraordinary Story — From Refugee to Entrepreneur to Philanthropist.
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