News

By all accounts the royal wedding was a huge success. Almost 5,000 police officers were used to oversee the event. During the operation snipers were posted on rooftops and plain-clothes officers blended in to the crowd as police put their massive security plan into action. Scotland Yard asked the public to be the police’s “eyes and ears” throughout the day to prevent any troublemakers from causing harm. Though I congratulate the Metropolitan Police for a job well done, it now […]

The Security Industry Authority has continued to play an important role for regulating the private security industry as per the Private Security Industry Act 2001. As an independent body they have been instrumental in reducing criminality, raise standards and recognise quality service across the United Kingdom but they quite simply have not achieved enough. Why was such a body set up in the first place, with two such differing tasks: to ensure compulsory licensing of individuals undertaking designated activities within […]

How safe is our rail network? On the surface, railway security in the UK looks reasonably safe with no report of drastic negligence or untoward incident apart from the tragedy of 7 /7, which dramatically impacted the London Underground infrastructure.  In the heyday of Steam Railway, security was barely a consideration.  However, times have changed and there is now more than ever a need for joined-up thinking and a focus of high quality security services.  And in my opinion that means […]

It was only a few years ago that ‘going green’ was seen as a rather twee idea that being environmentally friendly would somehow save the planet. Most big businesses didn’t see the link between being ‘green’ with economic growth and the maximisation of profitability. However, today being ‘green’ is about demonstrating corporate social responsibility and being part of the ‘solution’ rather than the ‘problem’. The security industry is one of the business sectors that is now having to face up […]

Security companies can market themselves in ways which are both cost effective and efficient. One of the key elements in adopting a marketing strategy is to identify your target audience. Interestingly and ideal for us as a sector – security services are ongoing and may not be subjected to market forces. There is however organisations and businesses that require security services but often resort to the services of non accredited security firms as they are cheaper. We need to highlight […]

As a security company our job involves dealing with society. We ensure the safety and security of individuals, businesses, property and events. Our job goes beyond undertaking surveillance and policing operations alone. One of the key aspects of our job is to work in collaboration with local communities promoting cultural cohesion. We rely on the members of the communities for information and support, and liaising with them is vital to our success. One of the best ways to win the […]

There’s not going to be much excitement among SMEs and private security companies as we step into 2011.  The challenges in particular for the security industry are going to be enormous:  austerity measures are beginning to bite, and many government organisations are cutting down on expenses more than ever before.  This is adversely affecting the security industry, particularly those that have contracts with national and local governments. In general, many businesses are cutting down on their security budget by 30% […]

The London Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games (LOCOG) says that it wants to use trained volunteers for providing security across the venues for the 2012 Olympic Games. According to LOCOG, by the time of 2012 Opening Ceremony, 100,000 people will be working on the Games including 3,000 staff, up to 70,000 volunteers and a large number of contractors. While it could be a good idea to use volunteers for the Games in general, questions can be raised […]

In two years time London will host the world’s largest sporting event, the Olympics. One of the challenges for its organisers will be to provide foolproof security for the games. The International Olympic Committee regards security as the “number one priority” for every organising committee, and we must ensure that we have the highest standard of safety procedures for the participants and the visitors alike. The organisers of the London Olympic Games have called on the citizens to volunteer for […]

As part of our recent survey across clients, retailers, public authorities and commercial facilities managers 85% of respondents cited Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) as an important issue. They also said they would be more likely to choose a CSR and environment focused supplier of security services than a company which did not take such matters seriously. How times have changed! Magenta was the first manned guarding company to be ISO 14001 certified around ten years ago and since then has […]