A Cambridgeshire Police Federation member says she’s ‘going out on a high’ after organising a successful International Women’s Day conference a few months before she’s due to retire.
Chief Inspector Kate Firman, chair of the Cambridgeshire Women’s Network, put together a packed agenda, which included presentations by the most senior female police officers in Jordan.
Kate said: “It went really well, and there was a real buzz in the room.
“It’s my last conference because I’m retiring in November. It was nice to go out on a high like that.”
The conference, which was held at Brampton Park Golf Club, was attended by delegates from Bedfordshire, Hertfordshire, Norfolk and Suffolk forces, as well as Cambridgeshire Police.
It was opened by Nick Dean, the Force’s Chief Constable, who welcomed the Jordanian officers to Force headquarters earlier in the day.
Colonel Doctor Delal and Lt Colonel Doctor Khansa Masala gave the conference an international feel when they talked on the theme of this year’s IWD, Inspire Inclusion.
Kate said: “They talked about how they’ve evolved from six women police officers in the 1970s to now having thousands.
“It was fascinating to see what they’ve done and how they are involved in so many aspects of policing.”
Other speakers included Rick Lee OBE, chief people officer of the construction company Willmott Dixon, who gave a fantastic talk on how they are seeking to achieve a 50% female workforce by 2030 and Jill Lanham, who, as ICT director, heads up the collaborated unit across Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Hertfordshire police forces.
There were also some interactive sessions, including an exercise called Six Thinking Hats which encouraged delegates to look at the problem of how to encourage more women, who are often the primary carers in their family, to apply for promotion, in six different ways.
The day finished with a panel Q&A before Cambridgeshire Police’s Deputy Chief Constable Jane Gyford brought it to a close.
Kate said: “We’ve had really positive feedback which will be used to shape next year’s event.
“Some of the comments said that the day was brilliant and that we need to continue to Inspire Inclusion and lift each other up across the region.”