In 1965 the GLC was established and was committed to a positive policy for equal opportunities. The GLC wanted women to be encouraged to become operational firefighters.

The first woman firefighter in the UK joined the LFB as an operational firefighter in 1982. Sixty other women joined the Brigade in the 1980s, with the majority remaining in the job for over 10 years. By 1991, London still had 50 women firefighters and in 2007 there were 196 women firefighters in the LFB.