A man who helped free the Birmingham Six and the Guilford Four had been named as one of the borough’s most influential residents.

Jack Kennedy, a justice campaigner from Drayton Park, in Highbury, was one of three illustrious former residents to be awarded a people’s plaque after a public vote.

Mr Kennedy, who died in 2003, was a key figure in the release of the innocent men, wrongly jailed on terrorist charges, and led a campaign to expose the number of deaths on building sites.

The other two winners were Florence Keen, who set up the North Islington Welfare Centre in Manor Garden, Upper Holloway, in 1913, which vastly reduced childhood death, and Cyril Mann, a painter and sculptor from Cruikshank Street, King’s Cross, whose work was inspired by bomb-damaged London.

More than 3,500 people cast their vote.

Cllr Catherine West, council leader said: “These green plaques mark the unique and diverse contributions of those selected that have stamped their mark on the borough.”