The Security Industry Authority (SIA), established under the Private Security Industry Act 2001 (PSIA), plays a vital role in public protection by setting and improving standards across the regulated private security industry. The SIA’s remit covers England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, with approximately 440,000 individuals currently holding an SIA licence.
The SIA’s two core statutory responsibilities are:
- Licensing individuals who carry out specific security activities
- Overseeing the Approved Contractor Scheme (ACS), which maintains a register of vetted providers of security services
The range of licensed activities includes cash and valuables in transit, close protection, door supervision, public space surveillance (CCTV), security guarding, key holding and (in Northern Ireland only) vehicle immobilisation. Non-frontline licences are also issued to supervisors and managers within the security sector.
In addition to licensing, the SIA’s duties under the PSIA include inspecting providers of private security services, monitoring and keeping under review the provision of private security services, setting standards of conduct, training and supervision for security businesses and operatives, and making recommendations on ways to improve standards in the private security industry.
Proposed Changes and Consultation
The SIA recently opened a consultation on two key changes to its statutory criteria. These criteria govern how the SIA assesses an applicant’s criminal record and determine whether they are a “fit and proper person” to hold a licence.
The proposed changes focus on:
- Expanding the list of criminal offences considered relevant to licensing decisions.
- Revising how decisions are made regarding applicants with certain criminal convictions, including those involving sexual or child abuse, neglect, or custodial sentences exceeding 48 months and to clarify the criteria on the ‘fit and proper person’ test.
The rationale behind these proposals lies in the fact that the current criteria have remained largely unchanged since licensing began in 2004. In the years since, many new criminal offences have been introduced. The SIA reviewed additions to the list of relevant offences, focusing on offences that demonstrate a lack of integrity or responsibility, pose risks to public safety, or a failure to protect people or property.
A public consultation was launched to gather feedback on updating the list of offences always considered during licensing. The aim is to better protect the public by including a broader range of offences, particularly those relating to exploitation or abuse, and to ensure transparency and consistency.
It’s important to note that the absence of a particular offence from the official list does not prevent the SIA from taking it into account in exceptional cases where it may still raise concerns about an applicant’s suitability to hold a licence.
Currently, only 1% of applicants have one or more convictions for offences the SIA deems relevant. Most applicants have no convictions at all, and only a small proportion have convictions for offences considered relevant.
Introducing the proposed changes is expected to increase the number of applicants with relevant offence convictions. Although the exact impact is hard to quantify, it may result in a modest rise in licence refusals and affect a small number of current licence holders. For some, convictions that were not previously considered relevant when they last applied for their licence may become so, potentially leading to licence revocation or refusal upon renewal.
The SIA proposed adding just over 440 criminal offences to the list of relevant offences, chosen from a pool of more than 1,000 reviewed in collaboration with the Home Office, the Scottish Government, and the Northern Ireland Department of Justice. The selection focused on offences that indicate behaviours inappropriate for licensed individuals.
The current list of offences is organised by category. The proposed changes include adding offences to existing categories and creating new ones to accommodate offences that don’t fit into the current structure. These new categories include:
- Tax evasion
- Company law offences
- Smuggling and customs offences
- Immigration offences
- Criminal attempts, encouragement, and assistance
- Prison offences
- Animal welfare offences
- Armed forces offences
- Breaches of court orders and regulatory offences
- Public order offences
- Safeguarding offences
Marble Arch BID submitted a response in support of these proposed changes.
The SIA is now reviewing the consultation feedback and will decide whether to submit final proposals to government ministers for approval and publication. Guidance for licence holders and applicants will be issued in due course, ahead of any changes coming into effect.
We will continue to monitor developments and provide updates as they become available.
