'I became a bouncer after Sarah Everard's murder - women make venues safer'
If Lisa Baskott had a pound for every time someone came up to her at the door of a venue and said they feel safer after seeing her there, she’d be rich.
The 53-year-old became a licensed door supervisor in 2021, which has seen her work at a range of events and venues for the past 18 months across Brighton where she lives. But she doesn’t want to be alone and this International Women's Day (IWD), has called for change in the security industry to attract and retain more female talent.
Currently out of 400k licence holders in the UK, just 10 per cent of door staff security are women. And this is where she believes a huge difference can be made in improving the safety of women and other vulnerable people in the nighttime economy by having a diverse workforce.
After she gained her licence, Lisa, who previously worked in advertising and had a property business, set up 2nd Line of Defence - the UK’s first female-focused recruitment agency for the private security sector.
Lisa became a licensed door supervisor in 2021 (Lisa Baskott)
Party animal Lisa - who says every night out should end as it started - with her friends (Lisa Baskott)The idea came about following the March 2021 murder of Sarah Everard, who was stopped by Met Police officer Wayne Couzens on her way home in Clapham before being kidnapped, raped, and killed.
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Born and raised in the southwest London borough, Lisa couldn't believe what had taken hold that night in a place where she had fond memories.
As a result, the former magistrate who has always wanted to give back to her community, set about helping women and other vulnerable people to reclaim their night - as statistics show that around half of women do not feel safe walking alone after dark, whether they’re in a busy public space or on a quiet street near their home, according to the Office for National Statistics.
"The day that I turned on the TV and saw the news about this woman in Clapham that was missing, that was the first thing that actually hit me because nothing ever really happens in Clapham," Lisa tells the Mirror.
"When Sarah Everard died, and I saw the response from the Met, I then heard an outcry from women and a collective volume that I don't recall hearing in my life before.
"I was angry that this happened to a woman in a place I only ever knew as a safe haven.
"This woman had done all the things we're told to do by our mums and by society. She did not stand a chance against a police officer. She was a law-abiding citizen and this person abused his power.
"So I started thinking about a wider scope and vulnerable people - ethnic groups, the gay community - is the safety of these people more likely to be affected in the nighttime economy?"
Seeing what happened to Sarah Everard in her hometown pushed Lisa into wanting to make a difference (PA)When the mum-of-two started researching security jobs, she came to realise that they outnumbered the stretched emergency services of police and ambulance - known as the first line of defence.
She thought about how security personnel could be utilised further to make a difference - but thought there was a disconnect between their positions compared to how they are valued and their pay.
"Private security personnel outnumber police by 18 to one, so it is left to these guys to do what is right when something goes wrong," she says.
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"But these people are underpaid, it is unsocial hours, they're often abused. What incentive is there for people and women especially to want to do that?"
Brexit and the pandemic has resulted in large-scale displacement of door supervisors while the Security Industry Authority (SIA) has reported a significant drop in licence applications.
To address this, Lisa argues that the perception needs to change of what a bouncer and security staff look like - which is typically a white, middle-aged man.
She says women have the desired skills for the industry - good communication, empathy, and de-escalation skills and says she believes that women seeing women at the door makes them feel much safer, knowing they have someone they can approach comfortably.
Women can also be utilised in women-only spaces such as toilets and refuge centres, along with carrying out female searches.
But to be able to advocate for others, she knew she had to go out there and experience it for herself before launching her female-focused security agency.
Lisa and her children, Eva (16) and Jack (14) (Lisa Baskott)Lisa became a qualified SIA-licensed door supervisor in September 2021 and her first job was working at the front gate of the Labour Party Conference in Brighton.
She remembers attendees giving her double takes, with her shaven bleached blonde hair sticking out among a crowd of males, but she was congratulated for doing the job with such attention to detail.
"I'm a real night owl, I'm nosey, love talking to people - I have loved it," Lisa continues.
"I'm passionate about the fact that everybody's night should end exactly how it started.
"You go out, you're excited, with your mates, feeling euphoric, you should be able to get home and end it the same way.
"I have two children, 16 and 14, and I do not want to know they're out there living their best lives at 18 and that people are taking a chance on their life but equally, I want my children to be represented when they go out.
"I don't want them to be afraid of going to someone on the door when something goes wrong. It's about trying to help vulnerable people reclaim the night and be safe."
She adds: "I genuinely believe that seeing a woman at the door would just immediately at that point of entry would make women feel comfortable.
"It shows that this club is a safe space to be taken seriously, but more importantly, when something goes wrong, they are more likely to come and speak to you if you are a woman.
"I was doing this across clubs, restaurants, music venues, and if I had a pound for everyone who came up to me and said how safe they felt just by seeing me - it is absolutely unbelievable.
"One parent came up to me and said that her daughter had seen me deal with someone on a night out and she went home and told her parents about it.
"The mother sought me out to say 'Thank you. You make me feel more at ease when X goes out because I know this is a place that takes the safety of young women seriously.' That blew me away."
She says women feel safer seeing females on the door of events and clubs (Lisa Baskott)
Lisa with Steven Bartlett at the NatWest Business Show (Lisa Baskott)And while being in a role where your job is often to de-escalate intense situations with members of the public, sometimes intoxicated, Lisa, who says she hasn't been physically threatened by anyone, isn't fearful of her own safety.
"I've had to intervene in the odd scuffle, with both men and women," she says. "I've never felt scared in these instances because I've always worked as part of a team, with clear guidelines as to how to respond in dangerous situations."
Speaking this International Women's Day, which theme is equity - which means a fair change in order to address the bias, stereotypes and exclusion women can face - Lisa highlights how attitudes and policies need to change to give women the same opportunities in the sector.
"We need to put plans and policies in place either at a government level, but better still at the grassroots level within security companies themselves and/or venues.
"Ensuring that women get what they need to improve their chances of getting security roles in the first place, or if they're already in security roles, making sure that they get access to the necessary help they need to improve the quality of their situation to get to that same level as their male counterparts," the mum-of-two begins.
"It's about attracting more women in the role that wouldn't ordinarily think about it. We have to think about the gender imbalance in the workplace and all the additional things women take on such as childcare, being a mother, the cleaning, that burden before we even bring work into it.
"The message needs to be that this could be something bigger and better for you and not just a quick way to make money - you can be head of security for whoever, but there is no clear pathway currently.
"It's not for a lack of women being interested, it's that it's stacked against them."
In a need to improve the industry as a whole, Lisa argues, she cites the Brixton Academy incident as the prime example where a fatal crowd crush at the venue left two people dead and one in critical condition.
Rebecca Ikumelo, 33, and a security guard Gaby Hutchinson, 23, died in hospital after the incident during a gig by singer Asake on 15 December, during which a number of people appeared to enter without tickets.
"The industry has been left to self-regulate," Lisa adds.
"People are massively undervalued, underpaid, taking bribes, putting people's lives at risk. This is what will happen. And people will want to leave the industry.
"There needs to be a set of standards so that if you're doing a job in Brighton, it's at the same standard as someone in Manchester.
"There needs to be training modules on diversity awareness for a start.
"There is a receptiveness for people wanting to see change. People are listening and people want to hear from me."
Lisa says: "We need to start reflecting the people coming through the doors on the doors.
"If I make just one woman feel safe on a night out then I'm doing something right."
The Security Industry Authority (SIA) was approached for a comment. Today they have launched an IWD campaign, which sees their chair Heather Baily speak to women working across a variety of roles within the industry and a published blog written by her.
In it, Heather, who recently met with several women who are involved in the management of night clubs to see the steps they are taking to ensure that both men but particularly women, can enjoy a night out safely, says "they have much work to do on ensuring that equality and inclusion is fully part of our DNA" but that they're making progress.
"We have a variety of staff support groups, led by committed members of our teams," she wrote. "These groups run a range of sessions to support everyone across the organisation and some have focussed specifically on the challenges that women often face.
"These sessions have been critical in starting practical conversations on a range of areas and on changes we might need to make as an organisation to support women in the workplace."
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