SIA work with Leicestershire Police to improve skills

The event was co-hosted by the Security Industry Authority (SIA), the private security industry regulator.

The SIA worked with Leicestershire Police to provide this one-off awareness raising session. It forms part of an initiative to assist Leicester’s private security industry following a rise of violent incidents in the city over the past year.

Nigel Davies, the SIA’s regional investigation manager for the East Region, said, “The aim of this event is for Leicester security professionals to build on their existing knowledge and experience. The learning will further equip them for the challenges that the security industry is facing in Leicester’s night-time economy. The SIA’s East Region team has been working on this initiative for some time, and we are very grateful to Leicestershire Police for providing support. This event has special relevance following the gas attack in a Leicestershire nightclub last year.”

The security staff were given a presentation on effective techniques when managing emergencies such as a gas or acid attack in a crowded area.  They were also given pointers on safer restraint, and warned about the risks of positional asphyxia, which can result in serious injury or worse to people who are under restraint.

Leicestershire Police provided security professionals with advice on basic security skills, such as conflict management and safe search techniques. There was also a refresher on the common law powers that govern allowable behaviour for security staff.

Inspector Manjit Atwal of Leicestershire Police said, “We wanted to provide private security staff with advice on safety and important trade skills, whilst also increasing their confidence in their own ability to deal with emergency situations.   It was great to see Leicestershire security operatives coming together and taking responsibility for their own further training.  The feedback has been very positive, and I hope that we were able to add to the mandatory SIA licence training in a coherent and useful way.”