This article examines the lived experiences of female police officers in relation to uniform provision, particularly body armour, in England and Wales. Using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA), the study draws on interviews and focus groups with 88 women across five police forces in 2023–2024 to explore how the police uniform fails to accommodate women’s bodies, resulting in pain, discomfort, and restricted movement – especially for those with larger breasts or bodies. Officers described being unable to breathe, suffering long-term back issues, and feeling shamed for requesting refits. Access to better-fitting equipment was inconsistent and often role-dependent, fuelling perceptions of unfairness and exclusion. This study focuses specifically on the institutional infrastructures that govern body-armour provision, including procurement processes, fitting protocols, and role-based access to PPE and discusses recommendations for establishing minimum standards, reintroducing fitting infrastructures and strengthening accountability in procurement.

This report presents the key findings of the 2024 National Uniform & Equipment Survey, which collated over 20,000 responses from officers and staff who wear the police uniform as part of their everyday role. Overall sentiment towards the uniform is negative, with common descriptors including ‘unfit for purpose’ and ‘ill-fitting’. Moreover, the uniform is widely regarded as unsuited to the specific functional requirements of police officer and staff duties. Critically, whether engaged in physically demanding tasks or sedentary work, respondents consistently report a sense of restriction and persistent discomfort - conditions that have become a routine aspect of their working day. As a result, many state a variety of physical health conditions they attribute to wearing the uniform. While some officers and staff report feeling professional when wearing the uniform, they do not perceive it as visually smart or reflective of pride in the organisation.

This study aimed to provide normative data characterising the torsos and breasts of female soldiers and to determine which torso and breast anthropometric measurements contributed to reports of poor body armour fit. Ninety-seven female Australian Army soldiers completed a questionnaire about their experience with current-issue body armour, including perceptions of fit. Participants also attended a single testing session where we took a three-dimensional scan of their breasts and torso and collected several anthropometric measurements to characterise their torso size and shape. Sixteen of the 22 breast and torso measurements collected were significantly related to the perceived fit of current-issue body armour systems. To improve perceptions of fit for female soldiers and, in turn, reduce movement interference, discomfort, and barriers to occupational performance, future body armour systems should cater to the wide range of female breast and torso shapes and sizes.

This study investigated whether female soldiers experience bra integration or breast discomfort/injuries related to body armour use and whether these issues were associated with breast size. Ninety-seven Australian Defence Force female soldiers completed a questionnaire and had their breast volume assessed (range: 91–919 ml/breast) using three-dimensional scanning. Twenty-two percent (n = 21) of participants reported integration issues between their bra and body armour, 63% (n = 61) reported breast discomfort while wearing body armour and 27% (n = 26) reported experiencing a breast injury related to wearing body armour. Although bra-body armour integration was not dependent upon breast size, female soldiers with medium-large breasts reported significantly more breast discomfort and injuries when using body armour compared to participants with small breasts. These findings highlight the importance of developing body armour systems that cater to the range of breast sizes of female soldiers in order to improve bra-body armour integration and reduce breast discomfort and injury.

Despite female soldiers representing a growing user population, military body armour systems are currently better suited to the anthropometric dimensions of male soldiers. The aim of this study was to explore issues that female soldiers experience with current Australian Defence Force (ADF)-issue body armour. Following a sequential exploratory design, an initial questionnaire was completed by 97 Australian female soldiers. Subsequently, 33 Australian female soldiers participated in one of three focus groups. Descriptive statistics of questionnaire data considered alongside thematic analysis of focus group transcripts revealed problems with the design (fit, form and function) of current ADF-issue body armour, as well as problems with the issuance and education surrounding use of the system. It is recommended that anthropometric data of female soldiers be better incorporated into future body armour designs, that these data inform processes surrounding both acquisition and issuance of body armour and that training protocols for body armour use be reviewed.

A professional sports bra fitting and issue service was introduced for women entering British Army basic training (BT) in 2020 to address breast health and bra-related issues. However, the suitability of commercial off-the-shelf sports bras for female tactical athletes, designed primarily for short-duration use, remains unclear. We aimed to develop evidence-based recommendations to inform British Army sports bra policy and establish a framework applicable to other female tactical athlete populations. Despite implementing a bra fitting and issue service, 61% of recruits still reported at least one breast or bra-related issue. None of the four sports bra designs tested fully met the varied demands of BT tasks. Ten key bra design characteristics (e.g. strap configuration, ease of use, support level) were identified across five different BT tasks (physical training, field exercise, military tasks, foot drill and classroom sessions), combining insights from short-duration laboratory simulations and long-duration field use.

This study follows on previous research which investigated the comfort and types of bras worn by UK female police officers when wearing body armour and performing typical activities. This controlled study involved a cohort of 31 female police officers and investigated three main areas. Firstly the effect of professional bra fitting on size and comfort, secondly the effect of wearing an underwired bra or a sports bra on comfort and ability to perform certain actions, and thirdly the effect of an underwired bra and sports bra on key anthropometric data in relation to the fitting of body armour.

Most female soldiers report that in-service body armour systems are too large. We investigated whether a smaller prototype body armour system could improve thoracolumbar range of motion (ROM) and reduce interference when female soldiers performed dynamic postures. 97 female soldiers completed three ROM tasks and seven dynamic postures wearing no armour, an in-service body armour system, and a smaller prototype system. Feedback on comfort of the prototype system was also obtained. Thoracolumbar ROM and dynamic posture completion were both hindered by using body armour, although the participants’ performances were significantly less impeded when they wore the smaller prototype system compared to the in-service system. A smaller body armour system that is better matched to the anthropometric dimensions of female soldiers appears to improve overall fit and function. An increased range of body armour sizes and female-specific designs should be systematically explored to further enhance fit and function of body armour.

The development of inclusive equipment and clothing is a priority across national defence departments that are part of The Technical Cooperation Programme. As such, a collaborative effort has been established to inform the development of clothing and equipment for women. This invited review provides an overview of an ongoing collaborative project presented at the sixth International Congress on Soldiers Physical Performance. The purpose of this review was to summarise the outputs of scoping work conducted to inform the direction of future research programmes. The scoping work has recommended a framework, which includes improved objective metrics for assessment, standardised methods to characterise study participants and improved methods for characterising the system being evaluated. The longer-term research project aims to implement the framework so that the design of future equipment and clothing is optimised for all end users.

This study investigated the effect of wearing body armour and varying loads on respiratory function and physical performance during prolonged marching in male and female soldiers. Methods: Twelve male and ten female soldiers completed four 12.25 km treadmill marches with different loads (21, 26, 33, 43 kg) and a 2.4 km best time test with 26 kg. Respiratory mechanics, gait, and movement were measured before, during, and after. Results: Only 50% of men and 10% of women completed all conditions; discomfort was the main limiting factor. Women carried a higher percentage of lean body mass (44–93% vs 36–74%), marched at higher %V̇O2max, and had greater breathing frequency. Load caused restrictive ventilatory impairment in both sexes, and inspiratory/expiratory muscle fatigue occurred within 50 min. Time for the best effort test was unaffected.

The purpose of this study was to explore the interaction of different bra types with personal protective equipment (PPE) in female police officers. Breast motion of 13 officers was captured in jogging under different bra support conditions. Displacement of breast tissue locations was recorded and compared. The high support condition significantly reduced breast motion. PPE also reduced breast movement, suggesting increased compression from body armour and tactical vest. Results suggest officers should consider a high‑support sports bra during work shifts and that performance may be compromised by breast support and equipment interaction

Within the Police service of England and Wales the wearing of ballistic and stab resistant body armour is common, with most police forces mandating its usage when away from the police station. Of all the serving police officers in England and Wales 29.1% are female (Hargreaves et al., 2017). A survey was developed and then distributed by the Police Federation of England and Wales to all servicing police officers up to the rank of Inspector. The survey returned 2633 responses after cleaning of the data. From the responses it was seen that the predominant bra type worn is underwired (71%) and the predominant UK bra size is 34B (9%). It was also determined that the predominant areas where the body armour either rubbed or caused discomfort were the left and right anterior mammary regions and the posterior lateral sacral region. By understanding the distribution of bra size, type of bra worn and areas of discomfort or rubbing it helps further understand the issues faced by female police officers and how body armour design could be improved.