‘Looking for a Man’s Job?’: A Historiography of Policewomen’s Experiences Throughout the Nineteen-Seventies, Eighties and Nineties

Over the last four decades, nineteen-eighties policing has been subject to intense sociological scrutiny and debate. Characterised by violent clashes with members of the public, instances such as the English Race riots and the Miners’ Strike encapsulated fraught police-public relations. Academics have since argued that police officers’ pursuit of violence was indicative of a wider ‘cult of masculinity’ embedded into police occupational culture. Owing to its overtly masculine ethos, policing was therefore widely regarded as a ‘man’s job’. Scholarship pertaining to the decade has subsequently focused upon the experiences of male officers, particularly those of whom who served for the Metropolitan Police. However, a lesser explored aspect of nineteen-eighties policing is the experiences of policewomen. Indeed, much like the rest of society, policing was going through its own cultural shifts. Following the staggered closure of the Policewomen’s Department towards the end of the nineteen-seventies, policewomen were slowly entering a maledominated environment and challenging the patriarchal zeitgeist. By the end of the century, policewomen were equal in rank and status; but very little is known about the transitional period that led to this point. The primary aim of this thesis is to contribute to this gap by examining how policewomen navigated an almost exclusively male-dominated occupation. Utilising the life course paradigm, this study draws upon thirty-five personal biographies from former policewomen and explores how they navigated one of the most turbulent times in twentieth century policing. Alongside life history interviewing, this thesis also utilises archival research as a storytelling technique to further illustrate participants’ narratives. The central argument of this thesis is that legislation such as the Equal Pay Act 1970 and Sex Discrimination Act 1975 were ineffective in achieving equality. Instead, a combination of timing, location in time and place, human agency, and linked lives, led to permanent socio-cultural delivered change. Forming part of its original contribution, this study explores a series of recollections of how participants arrived at the controversial decision to pursue a ‘man’s job’ – and how the reactions of their loved ones shaped their career expectations and aspirations early on. Next, findings further expand on existing knowledge pertaining to canteen culture, offering a detailed insight into how women navigated initiation ceremonies such as ‘station stamping’, ‘the mortuary’, and ‘wild goose chases’. Crucially, this study becomes one of the first studies to examine the role of policewomen in some of the most controversial moments in recent history. It is contended that the 1984/85 Miners’ Strike acted as a catalyst for change. Policewomen were able to capitalise on the social upheavals of the epoch and prove themselves as capable to their colleagues, achieving a series of ‘firsts’ throughout the decade that followed. And finally, this thesis offers insight into post-policing pathways and the lifetime dedication policewomen showed to the communities they served.