Women's Network making a difference to colleagues

8 March 2024

The secretary of Hertfordshire Police Women’s Network has spoken about the work it is doing to support colleagues on International Women’s Day.

Sergeant Holly Cooper-Waldron said the network was there to support women in their roles, and male line managers with issues their female colleagues may be experiencing.

Holly said: “We’re a network to support females and all things female-related.

“We have lots going on and, hopefully, we making a difference for people.”

One of the projects that Holly has been heavily involved in is around uniform, and in particular police riot uniform.

Sergeant Holly Cooper-Waldron is secretary of Hertfordshire Police Women’s Network.

Holly, who is a riot police officer, said: “When we have our training, we’re giving a one-piece overall, and we put our protective pads on top.

“When females have to use the toilet we have to take every single pad off.

“I’ve managed to bring about a change in Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Hertfordshire.

“The change means we now wear two pieces, making it a little bit easier for female officers.”

Holly has recently become a regional lead for the National Police Chiefs’ Council’s (NPCC) National Uniform Working Group.

And another uniform-related issue she has been looking at is in relation to women’s trousers. New trousers are due to arrive in Force soon which she described as ‘a big improvement’ on the current ones.

“They have a completely elasticated waistband, so for female officers they’re a lot more comfortable,” she said. “I’m confident people will find them a lot better when we start rolling them out.”

Another uniform-related issue being looked at by Holly is the introduction of a ‘roaming uniform wardrobe'.

“Now we’re tri-force, our main uniform store is in Cambridge, which is a long way for officers to go,” explained Holly. “Which is why I’ve devised this roaming uniform wardrobe initiative.

“Officers can come to a specific location in Hertfordshire Police, book an appointment to try on uniform.

“They can note down the size and type and order it via uniform stores knowing that it is going to fit.”

The network has also been looking at more regular contact with supervisors and line managers for officers on parental leave.

“As a line manager, we have to report in on a monthly basis with someone on maternity leave,” Holly said.

“Officers were finding they were on maternity leave for months and had little or no contact from their line management, so this is really positive.”

Other initiatives include the roll-out of free sanitary products in toilets across the Force toilets for men and women.

“To develop that project a bit further, we’re also trialling a menopause kit in toilets, which will include spare parts underwear, absorbent pads, fresh wipes, deodorant,” Holly said.

To mark International Women’s Day, the network is holding a wellbeing event at Force headquarters.

The day will include a talk on neurological linguistic programming, which studies the ways our brains affect our behaviour. There will also be some team-building exercises and the day will end with relaxation exercises.

The network is currently recruiting for a number of roles, including one to support student officers and staff, and one to provide social media support.

Luke Mitchell, Hertfordshire Police Federation chair, said: “Holly is an inspirational police officer and leader.

“She’s very driven and has landed a number of things across the force so our female colleagues are helped and supported.

“For too long our female staff had issues with equipment given to them, so I’m grateful she has implemented the wardrobe initiative.”

For more information on the Hertfordshire Police Women’s Network, including how to get involved, please contact Sergeant Holly Cooper-Waldron.