The City Security Council has a new chairman in January; Neill Catton. Neill, pictured, is taking over from David Ward, who served as chairman since the Council was formed in 2018.
Neill’s day job is as Managing Director of the London-based guarding company CIS Security. Neill has over 30 years of experience at all levels of the security industry. He is also a member of the security association ASIS, the City-based Worshipful Company of Security Professionals (WCoSP), the City of London Crime Prevention Association, the business body Resilience First and the facilities management institute BIFM. As an active Liveryman in the WCoSP and mentor to the Young Members Group he is passionate about supporting young talent and women into the industry.
He said: “I am delighted to be chairing the committee for the forthcoming year. The commitment and involvement of the members is excellent, and I look forward to their continued support as we take the organisation forward. Thank you to David Ward who led the way in 2020 and did a superb job in championing the call for ‘Key Worker’ status for security officers during the pandemic. We will work to provide collaborative support to the police and other authorities while raising the awareness of the professionalism and scale that the private security sector supports to both business and national infrastructure.”
David Ward, CEO of Chatham and London-based Ward Security, said: “The City Security Council has shown that collaboration between the security industry and the emergency services is invaluable when it comes to sharing intelligence and working together to make communities safer for us to work and live within.
“By having this common goal, we have shown not only how professional the security industry has become but that by standing together we are stronger in responding to incidents and more effective. We have also significantly elevated the reputation of security officers with the general public, so that there is a better understanding about the profession and importantly how integral security officers are to the smooth running of our society. I am really proud of what the CSC has achieved in London and I look forward to seeing the organisation evolve and grow nationally under the watchful eye of Neill Catton.”
Background
As the name suggests, the CSC was formed of guarding contractors covering central London, looking to be a forum for private security providers with police and other authorities. That led to a training exercise in the City in February; and on-street patrolling of the largely otherwise deserted Square Mile during the pandemic. In a significant move, in September the CSC opened its membership to any SIA-approved guarding firms.
Visit www.citysecuritycouncil.co.uk.
