Post-review changes to Approved Contractor Scheme enforced by Security Industry Authority

Changes have now come into effect following the Security Industry Authority’s (SIA) comprehensive review of its Approved Contractor Scheme (ACS) for private security businesses. This is the culmination of what’s described as a “root and branch” review of the scheme, during which the Regulator consulted extensively with approved companies and, indeed, the wider private security industry.

Evidence from the consultation suggested that the SIA didn’t need to make fundamental changes to the scheme. However, it was clear from the responses that there were opportunities to make improvements.

The Regulator has now published a refreshed ACS standard and new Self-Assessment Workbook.

Tony Holyland, head of quality and standards at the SIA, commented: “We’re building on a quality standard that has already proved itself to be successful. We’ve now made a number of key changes which will strengthen the scheme. We’ve worked closely with industry to derive a standard that reflects Best Practice and provides a framework for businesses to help drive improvement.”

Approved contractors should now undertake a full business review at the earliest opportunity to see how the new requirements affect their business. That will give them the information they need to make any changes and ensure they still conform to the requirements.

Summary of the changes

A summary of the changes is as follows:

*The standard has been updated to put greater emphasis on service delivery

*The aforementioned Self-Assessment Workbook (SAW) has been streamlined and made clearer and easier to navigate. The SAW contains the quality indicators that approved contractors must meet

*The SIA has revised the eligibility criteria and ‘fit and proper’ conditions and outlined them in a new brochure – ‘Get Approved’. This enhanced scrutiny will reassure clients and enforcement partners that they’re working with some of the best-run businesses in the industry

*The SIA is taking a firmer approach with PAYE on the advice of the industry in order to create a level playing field. Approved contractors must justify, with evidence, why their staff are not PAYE. This will confirm that businesses are employing staff on the correct basis, ensuring compliance with tax and employment law as well as making sure that employees of approved contractors enjoy proper employment rights

*The Regulator is revising its approach to marketing the scheme and providing support for businesses

*A ‘pre-approval interview’ will now be conducted with any new applicant business. The outcome of this ‘pre-approval interview’ will inform the SIA’s assessment of the business’ compliance with the Regulator’s ‘fit and proper’ conditions and identify whether there are any additional assessment needs

For further details on the changes read the bulletins on the ACS Review section of the Regulator’s website.