The Home Secretary James Cleverley earlier this month announced £4m spending to counter knife crime. Some £3.5m would go into the research, development and evaluation of new technologies which can detect knives carried from a distance and hand-held or body-worn systems which can be operated by police officers; while £547,863 would go on the refit and redeployment of four vans into new mobile live facial recognition (LFR) units for the Met Police.
Simon Alderson, CEO of the ACS Pacesetters guarding contractor First Response Group, welcomes that funding news, but adds: “Whilst the funding to tackle knife crime is clearly an important investment for the police, we should be mindful that it is our security officers who are increasingly on the front line of weapons-based crime and they need our support to protect them, and the public.”
As featured in the June edition of Professional Security Magazine, front-line retail and other staff, such as security officers deployed in shops, are the ones facing knives.
Alderson, pictured, added: “That is why now, more than ever, it is our duty as employers to ensure our teams are fully equipped in both a training and technological sense, to identify, assess the risk, and handle a weapons-based offence in the appropriate way, with safety as their number one priority.
“Even the most experienced security officer can fall victim to a weapons-based attack when faced with an unexpected situation. Preparing teams with specific weapons training could mean the difference between a situation escalating or being safely defused.”
Alderson added that a weapon can be not only a blade but anything that is improvised to intimidate, threat or cause harm. “Our teams have first-hand experience of items such as empty bottles, glasses, baseball bats, tools, and even everyday household scissors, being used to cause harm. Therefore, the actual figures are most likely higher.
“Training your staff in Action Counters Terrorism (ACT) awareness and the SCaN programme will give your staff the skills they need to prepare them for dangerous situations. By investing in your teams, you are not only prioritising the health and wellbeing of your own people, but you are prioritising the safety of your client and their customers.
“It’s not just about training. Investing in technology such as body cameras, biometric technologies, communication devices, surveillance, GPS monitoring and electronic incident reports have all changed the way offences are identified and recorded.
“In the event of unexpected weapons-based activity, it is essential that teams can communicate effectively and record events. By giving your teams the best technology, you’re giving them an extra pair of hands or eyes to help manage a situation.
“At FRG we strive to do the best we can for our colleagues, with ‘people first’ as our priority and that is why we ensure our team have the best training and equipment required for the job. However, sadly until the root cause of knife and other weapons-based crime is addressed, we must be prepared for all eventualities.”
