Britain's first female “bouncer” from Derbyshire says job title is outdated and should be scrapped

Britain's first female doorperson says the term bouncer is "outdated" and should be scrapped.

Last week Heather Baily, the head of the Security Industry Authority (SIA), sparked debate over whether the term bouncer should still be used today.

The security boss said that many women joining the industry don’t like the term, as it conjures up the image of a “large, muscular man”.

Britain’s first ever female bouncer, Delia El-Hosayny, 57, from Derby, says she agrees with this statement - adding that the term makes her picture “a gorilla with huge arms.”

Having started working on the doors in Derby at 18 years old, Delia says she has seen a lot of change in the industry - but has always hated the term bouncer.

She said: “It is an outdated word. People still use it, but it doesn’t describe the job well. It gives people the wrong impression. I never used to call myself a bouncer. I used to say that I was an ejection technician. It sounded better.

“It goes back to the days of it being a man’s world, like when I first started. Bouncer means that, if there is a fight, the doorman would take you outside and bounce you to the floor. It wasn’t very nice. Those times are gone.

“If they get rid of that word it will be better publicity for the job. People assume bouncers are thugs. When people say bouncer, I imagine someone standing outside looking like a gorilla in a black suit with really big arms - ready to jump on you.

“The term bouncer doesn’t suit the future of the security industry. The generation now that are growing up call it door security.”

Across her 30-year career in the security industry, Delia says that it was not all smooth sailing, having been insulted, stabbed, bottled, and even shot at.

Many staff had also treated her poorly based on her gender, with several men refusing to work with her when she was promoted to security manager.

However, there were also more glamorous moments, with opportunities to work for celebrities like singer Freddie Starr and darts champion "The Power," Phil Taylor.

Now, with many more women taking up jobs on the doors, Delia says she couldn’t be prouder of her legacy.

She said: “I think it is brilliant. There are loads of women in Derby now who work the security industry.

“I am stocky, but I am only 5’3. If I can do it then other women can too.

“Things have changed. When I first started there was no such thing as the SIA. If you could fight and look after yourself then you had a job.”

The SIA is a non-departmental public body which issues licences to those working in private security.

It was recently reported that of the roughly 450,000 people who hold an SIA licence, just under 11 per cent are women.

However, this number is on the rise in recent years, and SIA head Heather Baily thinks a shift in the language used to describe the job could help.

She told The Times: “I’ve asked female licence holders how they feel about that term, and they don’t like it. It’s so outdated.

“It goes back to times before regulation, before the SIA. And it doesn’t ­reflect the professionalism that today’s licensed operatives bring.”