Leicestershire Police is supporting International Women's Day

Today (Tuesday 8 March), marks International Women’s Day (IWD), a global day celebrating women’s achievements and raising awareness about equality for women.

This year’s theme is #BreakTheBias which encourages everyone to break free of stereotypes and discrimination and celebrate inclusivity and diversity while calling out inequality.

This year we are highlighting women and men from the force who are supporting #BreakTheBias through their roles in the workplace.

Chair of Leicestershire Police’s Women’s Inclusive Network (WIN), Detective Superintendent Reme Gibson, said: “It’s fantastic to be part of this global event. We want our force to reflect the communities we police and therefore that means seeing more women, both staff and officers in our senior and specialist roles – some of which they might never have considered applying for several years ago. I’m glad to say that times have changed considerably and these positive moves towards equality should be celebrated. We need to ensure we pave the way for others to follow in our footsteps.”

Reme is mum to a five year-old son and added: “Having a full on day job, coupled with being a parent is hard for anyone to juggle. However, organisations have hugely altered their attitudes towards working parents and it is imperative that we keep building on those developments in order that nobody feels they can’t have a successful and rewarding career as well.”

Chief Constable Simon Cole is also supporting the day.

He said: “I am proud to look back at how the force has changed during my time in policing, particularly when I reflect upon our workforce and the gender balance as it now stands. Back when I first started in the 80s, around 10 per cent of officers were women and had the majority of staff roles. Now I’m pleased to say this is almost a 50/50 balance and we see talented women across all departments working hard as part of Team Leicestershire, whether it’s as specialist detectives, firearms, or operational planning to name a few.

"I believe we are #BreakingTheBias everyday but we must ensure we continue to do so. International Women’s Day is a reminder for us to do just that.”