London Security and Harlow Chelmsford

Security recruitment: Met targets women

A call for women to join the Metropolitan Police’s Firearms Unit resulted in a fourfold increase in female applicants, proving security recruitment can effectively appeal to women

A call for women to join the Metropolitan Police’s Firearms Unit has resulted in a fourfold increase in female applicants – proving that women can be just as willing to enter risky situations as men, and that security recruitment campaigns can effectively appeal to them.

The Met’s campaign was reported in the Recruitment section of the Independent newspaper, which claimed that there has never been a better time for women to join the unit.

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Police recruitment from inside force
The newspaper said, “This strategy is already proving a resounding success, with applications from women increasing four-fold in the last year.” Women hoping to join the thin blue line and be handed a gun on day one are likely to be disappointed, though; the story continues, “As with any specialist division, the Firearms Unit will not consider candidates from outside of the police force, instead choosing officers who have at least three years' experience.”

Chief Superintendent Bill Tillbury, leader of the unit, believes that women have a valuable role in his squad. "I don't think women are put off by the danger," he tells the Independent. "Female officers are just as willing to enter into risky situations as their male colleagues. Part of the problem is the perception of how hard it is to get in. Women worry that they won't be able to carry the weapons, or pass the fitness test, and we want to reassure them that this isn't the case."

Good reason for targeting women in security recruitment
Bill believes that women bring their own qualities to the Firearms Unit, just as they do in other areas of security recruitment. "There is also a school of thought that believes that people in dangerous situations do respond differently to women, that they have a particular way of diffusing things," he adds.

The Met’s experience will be heartening for any business or other organisation looking to start a security recruitment drive to attract women.

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McKenzie Arnold Security Recruitment has a database of more than 300 SIA-licensed close protection security officers. It can provide candidates with a wide range of key skills including first aid, foreign languages and firearms capabilities.