An iconic fashion designer from Kent has been awarded a top accolade from a university.

Dame Zandra Rhodes, who was born in Chatham and is known as Medway’s own Princess of Punk, has been given an honorary doctorate from Canterbury Christ Church University.

The prestigious title is in celebration of her 56-year pioneering design and textile career which has seen her dress rock icons to royalty, including Freddie Mercury and Princess Diana.

The 83-year-old studied at Medway College of Art and is hailed as one of the most influential and exciting designers of our time in the international fashion industry.

She established the Fulham Road Clothes Shop in 1967, backed by the actor Vanessa Redgrave, which gave much publicity to her designs. But her reputation really grew when she moved to America.

With the support of the US publication American Vogue, Dame Zandra went on to design and make clothes for the American fashion market in New York.

In 1969, she established her fashion house, and opened a studio in West London, releasing her first solo collection, which drew significant attention from both sides of the Atlantic.

Her first UK fashion show was in 1971 and she has gone on to exhibit at London Fashion Week more than 70 times.

During the 1970s she became central to the British punk movement, earning her the nickname, The Princess of Punk.

Dame Zandra, whose childhood home was on Chatham Hill, continued to develop her design of textiles for interiors, furniture and homewares.

In 2003 she founded the Fashion and Textile Museum in London and, in 2014, was made a Dame for services to British fashion and textiles industries.

She also formed the Zandra Rhodes Foundation in 2020, which not only supports students and future generations of designers but is also undertaking cataloguing more than 50 years of her designs, textiles and memorabilia.

She is also a long-time advocate of “make do and mend“, and emerging fashion alternatives to inform sustainability.

Professor Rama Thirunamachandran, who is vice chancellor and principal of Canterbury Christ Church University, said: “We are delighted to welcome Dame Zandra Rhodes to our university community in recognition and celebration of her achievements within fashion.

“Her work and reputation have inspired generations of young designers.

“To honour her incredible influence across modern-day culture, back where it all began in Medway and as part of Medway Culture Fest 24, will hopefully continue to inspire future generations to embrace their creative talents, take the opportunities and make their mark on the world.”

At the ceremony at Rochester Cathedral Dame Zandra said she was “very proud to be receiving this award” and fondly remembered her time growing up in Medway, saying she “believes” in the town and that “we can go forward and make sure the nation knows about us”.

She also had some advise for young people starting in the fashion and creative industries, saying: “Whatever happens you’ve got to try and believe in yourself and surround yourself with encouraging friends. It does take a lot of hard work, but don’t give up and make sure that British design goes forward.”

The award was part of Medway Culture Fest 24, a year-long programme of cultural events and activities celebrating Medway’s creativity and heritage, and the transformational role culture has played in regenerating the area over the last 40 years.

At the prizegiving, all three Universities at Medway - Canterbury Christ Church University, University of Greenwich and University of Kent - came together to award honours to public figures who have made outstanding contributions to creativity and culture in Medway.