Criminology Research Council grant ; (17/76)
NB Large files attached.
The interim report entitled 'At the Crossroads? The Functions of Policewomen in Victoria' was submitted to the Council in October 1978. The final report of this research was submitted to the University of Melbourne as a Doctor of Philosophy thesis under the title 'Policewomen and Welfare' in 1981. This degree was awarded in 1982 The report comprises two volumes amounting to some 650 pages.
When the study was contemplated very little was known about the multitudinous activities of policewomen in Victoria or what relationships existed between policewomen, the community, statutory and non-statutory organisations within the welfare sector.
It was also anticipated, when the study was commenced in 1976 that equal opportunities legislation would be enacted in Victoria. The question of how this might impact on the social assistance role of policewomen, the implication of any change in their role on police policy and organisation as well as other helping services, were other issues which were to be explored.
The research included an examination of:
- The nature and extent of the activities of policewomen from 1976 to 1981.
- The types of problems coming to their attention and the sources of requests for intervention.
- The types of action taken by policewomen to resolve presenting problems.
- The socio-economic and cultural characteristics of persons with a range of personal problems seeking the assistance of police.
- The structure, organisation and policies prevailing at the police stations from which records were derived and interaction between male and female police with respect to the management of social assistance type cases.
- The impact of equal opportunities legislation upon the traditional welfare role of policewomen.
- The implications of changes in this role upon police policy and organisation generally as well as social policy planning and implementation.
The first phase of the research was based upon the analysis of records kept by policewomen in seven Women's Police Districts of Metropolitan Melbourne during 1976. This sample of 2,300 cases represented 33.1 per cent of the total case load of policewomen in these Districts. This indicates the extent of their social assistance role. The information obtained from these records was prepared for computer analysis and the results extensively interpreted and discussed in the final report. Certain inter-station comparisons of findings were also included to illustrate the reasons for variations in the types of cases presenting and differing management models. During the second phase of the research, the changing role of policewomen was monitored by a yearly analysis of their records and interviews with police.
The study therefore made a series of recommendations which included:
- The abolition of Women's Police Districts comprising policewomen only.
- The establishment of Community Welfare (or Assistance) Bureaux, on a District basis comprised of males and females particularly trained to respond to social assistance requests.
- The establishment of a Crisis Care Unit funded by Government which would operate, initially in the Metropolitan area, on a twenty-four hour basis.
These recommendations paved the way for policewomen to become fully integrated into the Victoria Police Force. If police were to cease to provide a welfare service, the study shows that there would be a serious gap in community welfare services. Nevertheless, this alone is no justification for continuing to divert police from their major functions of crime prevention and control, to a range of tasks for which they are not trained to cope and the performance of which subsidises the traditional welfare sector.
Since the report was completed in February 1982 the Victoria Police Force have renamed Women Police Divisions. They are now to be called Community Policing Squads. Positions in the Squads will be filled by both males and females and the principal duties of the Squads redefined. The social assistance nature of police work has been partially recognised. Additionally, in April 1982 a Project Officer was appointed, to work from the Department of Community Welfare Services, with a view to designing a program for crisis intervention services with appropriate linkages and referral processes.