The ‘accidental activist’ putting women’s safety first
8th March 2023
Author EditorPosted on Categories Business
Brighton & Hove Resident Lisa Baskott is the founder and CEO of 2nd Line of Defence; the first female-focused security recruitment agency in the UK.
Lisa became a qualified Security Industry Authority (SIA) licensed door supervisor in September 2021, and since then she has worked as part of security teams within the Brighton area.
On International Women’s Day, Lisa explains why she believes women are key to the future of the front-line security industry in the UK…
On the 9th March 2021, police officer Wayne Cousins was arrested for the kidnapping, rape and brutal murder of Sarah Everard in Clapham, South London. This single event changed the course of my life; and the seed for what would become 2nd Line of Defence, had been planted.
After Sarah’s death, the core theme that sparked widespread debate about women’s safety, and violence against women in the UK, centred around the right that ‘every woman should feel safe to walk on our streets without fear of harassment or violence’. Like so many women at this time, I felt an urgent need to speak out about tackling this issue.
I often refer to myself as an ‘accidental activist’ and campaigner of women’s rights; I did not specifically choose to be on this path, rather it chose me. I realised at this time, still in part ‘locked down’ due to the social distancing measures imposed on us since March 2020, that we were at a pivotal point and crossroad in society’s response to gender-based violence (particularly towards women).
Times were changing and women’s voices were finally being heard, but I could sense that the odds were still very much stacked against us. Women’s voices have become increasingly more powerful since the #metoo movement started in 2017, right up until the brutal death of Sarah Everard in 2021. However, a new generation of young women had found its voice and was saying “enough is enough”.
The question as to how women can keep themselves safe (especially at night) has always been a talking point for women – but it is finally getting recognition from other sections of society, especially from within government.
Conversations are now being had around the need for more and better resourcing, in the right places to help create safer environments. In 2022, Katy Bourne, the Police and Crime Commissioner for Sussex, successfully bid for nearly £1 million to tackle violence against women and girls (VAWG) in the latest round of the government’s Safer Streets funding scheme.
At the time, and as a mother of two young teenage children, I felt an overwhelming need to ensure that neither I, nor my children, would ever have to live our lives in fear. It was set against this backdrop of change that 2nd Line of Defence was born.
As a female-focused front-line security recruitment agency, my aim is to prioritise the safety of women and vulnerable groups within the night-time cultural economy by addressing the massive under representation of women in the front-line security sector. Despite being regulated for over 20 years, women still only represent 10% of the 400k front-line licences issued in the UK.
Security remains to be a male dominated industry; sectors and professions are still unnecessarily gendered in the public consciousness and are often seen as ‘man’s work’.
We need to change this narrative.
This outdated view fundamentally misunderstands the complex role of a modern security operative. The industry has evolved beyond brute strength, and qualities such as communication, empathy and industry knowledge are critical to modern-day security sectors and highly valued by employers.
I’m advocating for a new approach to recruitment within the industry; one which highlights what women can specifically bring to the role. The security industry needs to recognise that diversity is the key to success: if it doesn’t start making changes and moving forward in this area it’s going to fail to be relevant within many of the environments in which it operates.
The industry needs to think about the “customer experience” and ensure that the people that it engages with on a daily basis feel valued and listened to, because surely, respecting and reflecting the community in which it serves should be the ultimate goal.
So, I find myself on a journey that starts with invoking trust. I’m on a mission to bring about systemic change to make night-time life safer for all girls, women and vulnerable groups living in the UK. I want to show them that my business goals encompass their concerns, fears and hopes around the issues concerning their safety, But more importantly, to convince them that they are key to the overall solution.
So, if like me, you believe that a great night out should always end as well as it began; then please share my story with just one other person, and help vulnerable people reclaim their night!
Follow me here:
https://f-entrepreneur.com/ialso-top-100-bio/lisa-baskott/