Security guarding contract companies have formed the City Security Council (CSC). Pictured left to right are, back row, Paul Barnard and David Ward of Ward Security, David Evans of Global Aware, and Adrian Moore of VSG Security; and front, Richard Woodford of the Corporation of London, and City of London Police Commissioner Ian Dyson. The CSC’s aim; to better support the City of London Police in a crisis.
Over the last 12 months, some security businesses have collaborated to gather ideas and agree a CSC charter that standardises responses when there is an emergency. The CSC members will pool resources – information gathering and sharing as well as their physical presence from 1000-plus security officers and associated services across the Square Mile.
The formation of the group has been overseen by David Ward, CEO of Ward Security. He said: “The key purpose for the council is to galvanise efforts and improve incident responses of security companies in the city of London at times of crisis as well as to help the City of London police. By establishing a charter and standardising how we operate when there is an emergency or crisis we will then all instinctively know what our physical reaction will be as well as how we can best gather and share information.
“The City of London Police will benefit from knowing there is consistency in response from the security industry and how we are supporting them. It will make us all more prepared and effective in the event of a crisis, which can only be a good thing.”
The idea has been around for a while; ever since 9-11 and 7-7 showed the need for more bodies than the police could provide in such an emergency. Hence Project Griffin, which originated (including the name) in the City of London, which included terrorism awareness training and a provision for such trained officers to staff cordons. Griffin has now become part of the official ACT awareness training.
City of London Police Commissioner, Ian Dyson said: “Alongside our police officers, the security officers are very often the first people who the public turn to for help when there is an emergency. These officers provide a vital role in helping to support and guide people during a crisis and so having a collaborative and consistent approach will not only help them work through an emergency but helps my police officers understand what is going on the background when they are dealing with an incident. The CSC shows just how much knowledge is out there in the security industry and the benefits of collaboration.”
The CSC will be chaired by Adrian Moore of VSG. He said: “This collaboration will not only improve our effectiveness but will help us understand where we need to improve standards and training for security staff to ensure that we are all working to the same end. It is an excellent example of how important our industry is in helping to safeguard the public and assist the police in times of crisis.”
Visit www.citysecuritycouncil.co.uk. CSC founding security members are:
Allied Universal (Europe) Ltd, Amulet Security, Axis Security, CIS Security, Cordant Security Services, Corps Security, Global Aware International, ICTS, ISS, Kingdom Security, Profile Security, Securitas, Smart Sec Security, Ultimate Security, Unitrust, Universal Security, VSG Security and Ward Security
