Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC), owners of Lord’s Cricket Ground, have gone over their security procedures over the last 18 months. Besides new mail handling procedures and documentation checks, MCC have also added blast-proof filming to most of the glazing at their St John’s Wood home in London NW8.
After receiving advice from the official National Counter-Terrorism Security Office (NaCTSO) that 90 per cent of all injuries in a bomb blast are caused by flying glass, the club began working with Solartek Films Ltd to plan the blast-proofing of windows at Lord’s. In time for the start of the 2016 season (pictured, the final game against Yorkshire, that won Middlesex the County Championship in September) the majority of glass in buildings at Lord’s was fitted with optically clear anti-shatter film.
The work by Solartek began on the buildings that overlook the playing area to Lord’s. The pavilion, a grade II listed building, was the first to receive the full programme of filming. The club says that it’s worked with the NaCTSO and the Metropolitan Police to overhaul the wider Lord’s security operation since January 2015.
The focus of this work has been the updating of security plans, staff training and awareness, and physical infrastructure improvements. With blast-proof glazing close to completion, MCC are considering a number of other security measures at Lord’s for the 2017 season.
Derek Brewer, MCC Chief Executive, said: “In the current climate it is crucial that security at Lord’s is as tight as possible, and I am very pleased with the marked improvements we have made in the last 18 months. We have excellent working relationships with numerous key stakeholders including the Met Police and the NaCTSO, and we are grateful to Solartek for their work on the blast proofing of our glazing. We will continue to develop the security operation ahead of a busy summer of fixtures next year.”
