Female officers from An Garda Síochána are on patrol in Cork streets for the first time.
Helena Hayden from Athy is one of four female Garda sergeants in the force. She joined two years ago, and trained in Dublin, where she and the other female Gardaí were initally posted.
From the start we did ordinary police work, like the men.
On the streeta of Dublin people reacted positively to the women as members of the Garda Síochána. Helena Hayden has found that the citizens of Cork are just as welcoming.
The people are very friendly towards us here.
Based on her experience to date, joining the Gardaí is a good career option for girls as among other things the work offers a lot of variety.
This episode of 'A Munster Journal' was broadcast on Radio Éireann on 19 May 1961. The reporter is Ned Gleeson.
‘A Munster Journal’ was a weekly digest of events and personalities, compiled and presented in the Cork Studios, and presented by Andreas O’Gallagher, Gerard Murray, Donncha Ó Dúlaing and John O’Sullivan. First broadcast in 1959, it ran until 1968.
