A police officer who helped design a new hijab because the one provided was uncomfortable and unsafe said she hopes it will inspire other Muslim women to join.
Pc Uzma Amireddy, a positive action coordinator, said the hijab given to her by North Yorkshire Police was uncomfortable, did not look good and was potentially unsafe in hostile situations.
She said: ‘If you want to attract people from diverse backgrounds they have to feel and look good in their uniform and something like that certainly will put people off joining.
‘That’s why I took it on myself.’
After she took the issue to her chief officer – Pc Arfan Rahouf, who is the force’s operational lead for faith and belief, got involved in the development.
With input from Pc Amireddy, he set about finding a hijab that would be suitable.
They sourced one from a local supplier and suggested some alterations to help make it more suitable for use by officers – for example, the head and neck are detachable, meaning if someone were to grab and pull it, it will not pull around the neck.
