Gender on the agenda – MPA

79/04
4 November 2004

The Metropolitan Police Authority’s Equal Opportunities & Diversity Board (EODB) will today focus on how the Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) supports women, as employees and service users, in the capital.

Members of the EODB will be updated by the MPS’s Diversity Directorate on progress to improve the welfare of women working within the organisation and initiatives currently being undertaken to improve services provided externally.

Following the formal part of the meeting, EODB chair Kirsten Hearn will invite an audience of representatives from women’s groups across London to contribute to an informal discussion in order to hear specific concerns and get feedback on policies discussed.

Kirsten Hearn said:

“The MPS has been slowly waking up to the need to address long-standing inadequacies in the way it treats its women employees. An organisation’s employees are its most valuable resource and they need to be treated with respect and fairness, including equality of rights and opportunity, irrespective of gender.

“Progress has been made and positive policies and practices, such as a specific female personal development and leadership programme, a female police staff mentoring programme and a childcare co-ordinator within human resources, have been introduced recently. But more needs to be done and the Authority, through this committee, will be monitoring progress keenly.”

Speaking about women as customers of MPS service delivery, Kirsten said:

“Again, slow progress is being made to improve the service our police provide to women across the capital. We anticipate that women’s groups attending today’s EODB will contribute to our understanding and make suggestions that could help effect change.”

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