Margot Ruth Aline Lister Baroness Lister of Burtersett CBE generally known as Ruth Lister was born on 3 May 1949 to Dr Werner Bernard and Daphne (née Carter) Lister. She attended a private school and then the University of Essex from which she graduated with a BA in sociology and continued to an MA in multi-racial studies from the University of Sussex. She has also received honorary doctorates from the universities of Manchester (1987) Essex (2012) and Glasgow Caledonian University.