As reported in The Argus, Sussex has more women police staff patrolling its streets than anywhere else in the country. After a concerted recruitment programme, nearly six in ten of the county's police community support officers are women, the highest percentage in the UK and far above the national average of 42%.

There are currently 236 women serving as PCSOs in the county - 59% of the total. Overall, 57% of Sussex Police staff and 30% of officers are women. The force has pledged to make equality "a reality rather than an aspiration."

PCSO Emma Swann, who patrols the south Portslade area, has been in the job for more than five years. She said "There are certain situations when being a woman helps but I don't think it has a major impact on the overall job. The important part is that we get to know people in the community we serve."

The Resources Scrutiny Committee has heard how the main aims of mainstreaming diversity and equality in day to day people management activities of the Force is to reinforce the culture and behaviours that promote customer service, provide services that meet different people's needs and build relationships with communities.

Steve Waight, Chairman of the Resources Scrutiny Committee said: "There has been substantial effort from the Authority and the Force to improve diversity in recruitment and this very positive news reinforces that. We are making steady progress towards achieving a representative workforce and have plans in place to further improve the monitoring of workforce diversity."