Every business and event – no matter what event that is in nature - needs to consider a security presence to protect from and deter crime. This protects staff, visitors, and the general public from anti-social behaviour and threats, as well as reducing the risk of costly break-ins, theft, and vandalism at your workplace. With growing pressures and recruitment issues within the police, investing in your own security through trusted providers such as Carter Security, is the most effective way to reduce the risk of crime at your business premises.
With SIA-licensed security guards, you can relax knowing that there’s a trained professional watching over your business, whether that’s via CCTV, manned guarding, or mobile patrols. As extensions to your team, we have the interest of your business at heart. Trained to respond swiftly and professionally, our security officers are an excellent deterrent, especially when partnered with our clear signage, showing you’re security minded and have invested in a trusted provider.
One of the questions we often get asked is what legal powers our security officers have, which we’ve covered below to explain what security officers can and can’t do.
Security officers can detain individuals
If someone is actively causing damage to your property, or if they are trespassing, our security officers can detain them under Section 24A Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984. This is otherwise known as a citizen arrest, but the difference is that our SIA licensed security officers are trained to know exactly when to and how to safely conduct a citizen arrest. Therefore, they can detain someone if -
• There is no police officer present to make an arrest and an offense is being/or has reason to believe is being committed.
• There is a need to prevent someone from causing physical injury to themselves or someone else
• To prevent someone from causing loss or damage to property
• To prevent someone from getting away before a police officer can arrest them, meaning they can be identified.
Security officers can search people or use force if needed
Security guards are allowed to use ‘reasonable force’ to prevent crimes under the terms of Section 3 of the Criminal Law Act 1967. To protect ourselves, and everyone else involved, our security officers are fitted with a body camera that are able to gain visual and audio footage. This means that if the event was to be described in court, we can confidently provide evidence of exactly what happened, safe in the knowledge that the extensive training our security officers undergo wouldn’t have used anything other than reasonable force, and only when strictly necessary.
Security guards can also carry out searches of people or their bags - with permission. If permission isn’t granted, they are allowed to refuse entry to that individual.
If you think you have what it takes to be a security officer and you’re looking to further your career within the security industry, please check the careers section on our website or email us an up-to-date copy of your C.V. We never subcontract, we invest in training and we work hard to support our staff. We look forward to meeting you.
We’re experts in providing businesses like yours with quality security to reduce the risk of crime at your business. For more information on how we can support your business with quality security, please don't hesitate to get in touch with a member of our team.
