[7] In 1939, the family moved to Torquay, where Arrowsmith studied at Stover School, before transferring to Cheltenham Ladies College in September 1944.
[14] In 1974, Arrowsmith was convicted of offences against sections 1 and 2 of the Incitement to Disaffection Act 1934, and sentenced to 18 months in prison for having handed out leaflets at a British army base, urging soldiers to refuse to serve in Northern Ireland.
After walking out from prison, Arrowsmith spoke at an anti-fascist demonstration in Hyde Park and befriended lesbian and gay attendees.
In an interview with the 5 Cally Road research project, Nettie Pollard (a member of the Gay Liberation Front), recalled Arrowsmith saying to LGBT protestors, "Well, why don't we go to Housmans?"
The group took sanctuary at the 5 Caledonian Road premises shared by the radical bookshop Housmans and the pacifist newspaper Peace News.
When arresting officers appeared at the scene, Arrowsmith refused to walk downstairs and was carried down three flights of stairs.
In 1978, the Commission found her conviction "a necessary restriction on the exercise of free speech in the interests of national security and for the prevention of disorder", and so did not violate the Convention.
[23][24][25] Arrowsmith was involved in a personal relationship with a fellow peace campaigner, Wendy Butlin,[10] who was also one of the original signatories for the Committee of 100.