Advance Security Makes Shoppers a Priority

Following a number of major shopping centre contract wins, Advance Security is investing in the future of the sector with the creation of a dedicated shopping centre division. Set up after several years of research and development into the specific needs of the shopping centre environment, the new division is the first part of a three-pronged investment into the sector, which also includes the development of a specialist BTEC training qualification in shopping centre security and the appointment of a national operations manager.

Barry Dawson, MD for Advance Security explains: “Shopping centre protection accounts for around 20% of our business and in our experience, represents a unique challenge for the security industry. We’ve established our new division and BTEC training qualification after careful consideration of the niche requirements of the sector, in order to offer our clients a package of guarding and technologies specifically tailored to their individual needs.”

The curriculum for the new BTEC qualification has been developed in partnership with Paul Keeling from Senate Training, an expert with 30 years standing in security consultancy, risk assessment and crime reduction. The course covers a range of skills, from offender profiling and conflict resolution, through to first aid training and dealing with lost children.

Paul Keeling comments: “Shopping centre security requires a careful balance between creating an atmosphere of safety and enjoyment, whilst ensuring public protection and being confidently assertive when required. The new BTEC training qualification has been designed to equip trainees with the skills to work in the most demanding shopping centre environments.”

The new initiatives are a reflection of the company’s commitment to the sector moving forward, says Richard Bailey, sales and marketing director for Advance Security: “It is our responsibility to make this investment ourselves in order to provide our clients with the very best service moving forward. We work with every level of shopping centre management, from individual tenants and centre managers right through to some of the largest shopping centre operators in the World, and the overriding pressure for all of them is the need to balance customer safety with the commercial practicalities of their budgets. A good security service should be an asset, not a financial headache, so we need to ensure that the solutions we specify are both relevant and price sensitive. It’s ultimately about delivering peace of mind – for our clients, their tenants and the general public.”