Scotland’s police forces have vowed to increase efforts to promote women
into top jobs.
The Association of Chief Police Officers in Scotland (Acpos) last week
launched a campaign to boost the number of senior female officers, after
official figures revealed women are still under-represented at managerial level
north of the border.
Half of Scotland’s police forces have no women above chief inspector level,
while only two forces have women in the senior chief officer ranks.
Chief constable Andrew Cameron, chairman of the personnel and training
standing committee at Acpos, said the force had to be more representative.
Linda Fabiani, Scottish National Party MSP for Central Scotland, welcomed
the Acpos campaign but warned that there was no quick fix to the problem.
"It’s time for female officers across the country to be given access to
the equal status of their male colleagues otherwise my concern is that fewer
and fewer women will pursue a career in the police force," she said.
Still room at the top
– Just 3.5 per cent of superintendents and chief
superintendents in Scotland are women, compared to 8 per cent in England and
Wales
– A total of 9 per cent of inspectors and chief inspectors in
England and Wales are female, while in Scotland that figure has dropped to 5.7
per cent
