POLICE SERVICE LAUNCHES GENDER AGENDA – AUGUST
21, 2001
A blueprint for the future of women police officers will be
launched in Birmingham on Tuesday August 21, supported by representatives from
almost every police force in Britain.
Chief Constables and frontline officers will be joined by
Home Office Minister Bob Ainsworth MP, and other special guests to launch the
Gender Agenda, at West Midlands Police Sports and Conference Centre, Tally Ho!
on Tuesday August 21, 2001.
The Gender Agenda is the result of an 18-month collaboration
between a group of women police officers, a university professor and policing
experts from the Home Office. The document they produced outlines the main
issues and dilemmas affecting women officers who make up just 16 per cent of
the total police service, compared with 44 per cent of the UK’s general working
population.
Assistant Chief Constable Julie Spence of Thames Valley
Police, who is also President of the British Association of Women Police, has
been instrumental in driving forward the project.
“The Gender Agenda is not about ‘men bad, women good’ or
political correctness for its own sake, it’s about common sense,” explains ACC
Spence. “We want to help individual women officers maximise their potential
which in turn leads to benefits for the whole organisation – increasing forces’
performance and so improving the service we offer to the public.
“We also recognise that many men support and endeavour to
understand the dilemmas faced by minority groups - and women in particular -
and not all women do.”
The Gender Agenda highlights out-dated practices and
suggests ways in which the police service could be a more modern and
progressive employer. Some of the challenges faced by female officers include:
· equipment
and protective clothing designed for men rather than women
· old-fashioned
physical tests which need adapting to be relevant to 21st century policing
· managers
refusing to recognise work/life balance issues and who only grudgingly consider
part-time working or flexi-hours
· long-term
residential courses meaning extended time away from home and associated family
care problems
“When, for example, we talk about
child care there is an immediate assumption that this is a problem solely for
women officers, but there is a growing number of men who are raising children
on their own. The same situation arises with caring for elderly relatives.
There is a growing skills shortage and the police service should be doing
everything possible to attract and to keep people with invaluable experience
and expertise, not penalise them for having a family and a life outside work.”
ACC Spence and her colleagues are now
seeking the support of a broad cross section of police officers and
organisations to help achieve the aims of the Gender Agenda. These aims
include:
· achieving
a balance of women police officers consistent with the proportion of women in
the general working population
· ensuring
there is the right working environment and equipment to enable women officers
to do their job professionally
· developing
an understanding of the challenges faced in achieving a successful work/life
balance
· ensuring
women’s views are represented on influential police policy-making bodies
At the launch on August 21, guest speakers will include Bob
Ainsworth MP, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the Home Office, and
Professor Jennifer Brown of the University of Surrey. A group of high profile
guest panellists will also be at the event to give their organisation’s
perspective on the Gender Agenda, and to answer questions from delegates. The
panel comprises:
| Dan Crompton | HM Inspectorate of Constabulary |
| Dr Marie Dickie | Association of Police Authorities |
| Tony Burden | President of the Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO) |
| Kevin Morris | President of the Superintendents' Association |
| Fred Broughton | Chairman of the Police Federation of England & Wales |
| Ravi Chand | Chair of the National Black Police Association |
| Chris Mould | Director of National Police Training |
| Ian Blair | Deputy Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police |
“I hope this launch helps raise awareness, encourage debate
and create better understanding within and outside the police service about the
challenges and dilemmas facing women officers,” said ACC Spence. “A modern and
responsive police service needs a range of viewpoints and experience that only
a balanced workforce can provide.
“The Gender Agenda is not ‘tinkering with the numbers’ as
cynics may believe, it is trying to ensure the police service of the 21st
century better reflects and responds to the needs of the society it serves.”
For more information about the people who have produced The
Gender Agenda, click here