Andrew Nicholls

The deal will enable all the senior members of their security team to obtain Professional Membership status The Security Institute announced at their Annual General Meeting, held on Tuesday 25th April, that it has entered into a Group Membership arrangement with the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO). Professional Membership status The deal will enable all the senior members of their security team to become members of the Institute and obtain Professional Membership status. Several members of the FCO security team are already Institute members and the new arrangement will enable about another 50 members of the team to join the Institute. Latest security industry advancements Roddy Drummond, FCO Head of Security Profession, said: "The FCO are delighted to enter into partnership with the Security Institute which will ensure our team of security professionals keep up to date with the latest industry advancements and have the opportunity for ongoing development." Andrew Nicholls, Chief Executive of the Security Institute, said: "We are delighted to be able to make this announcement as it brings together several weeks of discussion and agreement and I very much look forward to working with the FCO in the future over CPD arrangements and achieving formal qualification for all members their Security Team.”

The Security Institute has issued a call for vigilance to those responsible for premises in the UK Andrew Nicholls, Deputy Chairman of The Security Institute, the UK's principal professional body for senior security personnel today extended the organisation's sympathies to all those suffering loss and injury as a result of the attack at the Pulse nightclub in Orlando, Florida but also issued a call for vigilance to those responsible for premises in the UK. "This incident is another shocking example of violence targeted without conscience or remorse. In Britain we have past experience of attacks on bars and nightclubs, including the gay community being specifically attacked in London in 1999. These type of venues are sometimes described as 'soft targets' because they are places of recreation with a degree of unrestricted access." Contingency plans to respond to terrorist attacks Nicholls went on "The Security Institute encourages those responsible for the management of any premises, to develop contingency plans so as to be able respond in the event of a terrorist attack. The National Counter-Terrorism Security Office (NaCTSO) and the Centre for the Protection of National Infrastructure (CPNI) have made available a range of advice to help organisations with this task. No-one wants to live in a fortress but all necessary steps should be taken to ensure that if the worst happens venues can take necessary steps to protect their customers and staff. Having an emergency plan to deal with a terrorist incident should be as commonplace as fire procedures. As the largest professional membership body in the UK the Security Institute has a wide membership with extensive reach and will assist wherever possible." Read more on the Orlando attack here

The conference will be titled "The State of Security 2016" and will look at real world security issues in real time The Security Institute recently announced the launch of its 2016 Conference with a new format from its previous conferences. Introducing the changes, Andrew Nicholls, Deputy Chair of the Institute explains: "With past conferences we have always selected a theme and chosen speakers to deliver presentations that supported those themes. But the security situation is a fast-evolving set of circumstances and events can suddenly become hugely important. In the past we have not had the flexibility to include them in our flagship event. "This year we are putting the emphasis on securing authoritative speakers and acknowledged experts who will present on the up-to-the-minute issues that affect the security situation. This allows us enormous content flexibility and means that attendees can be guaranteed insights into what are the live issues of the moment." The State of Security 2016 The conference will be titled "The State of Security 2016" and the list of speakers at the launch reflects a significant level of expertise and authority. The conference will be chaired by Professor Martin Gill CSyP FSyI, one of the leading researchers into security and related issues introducing a line-up of speakers that already includes Sir David Veness CBE QPM, former Assistant Commissioner of Specialist Operations in the Metropolitan Police and UN Under Secretary-General for Safety and Security. Sir David will be joined on the platform by former Head of Counter Terrorism for the Ministry of Defence, Major General Chip Chapman CB who is a regular analyst/commentator on terrorism, radicalisation, government Counter-Terrorist policies and Middle East strategies, Brett Lovegrove SyI the Chief Executive of CSARN - the City Security and Resilience Network - and Sean Cunningham former Head of the New Scotland Yard Hostage and Crisis Negotiation Unit who is now Group Operations Manager for the Inkerman Group. More speakers will be announced shortly. Nicholls added "We really do have a stellar line up for The State of Security 2016 and I can promise attendees an illuminating series of presentations and discussion focusing on matters of direct concern current on the day of the conference. To my knowledge no other conference will have this degree of flexibility in tailoring the content to real world events in real time."