By Marc Gibson – Area Security Manager, OCS Group UK
Due to the impact of the Covid19 pandemic, Security Officers servicing all industries and sectors have had to adapt to newly implemented working practices to mitigate the risk of infection and ensure the safety of themselves and others. And perhaps none more so than those servicing the Justice System.
I currently manage the security services across 20 judiciary premises, which also includes new Administratively Consolidated Trial Courts (ACTC), delivering over 4,000 hours per week for a large national contract on behalf of OCS Group UK. The ACTC Premises have been setup to increase current capacity during the COVID 19 pandemic and include hotels, universities, and football stadiums. The size of the security teams for each location can vary greatly, from just two Officers per day, to seventeen on the larger and more complex sites.
At each location we have a specific entry process where our Security Officers undertake a search adapted for the new Covid19 restrictions. The entrance process consists of multiple questions asked to everyone entering a premise to ensure they are not breaking current government guidance and are indeed, safe to enter the premises. The search process consists of a Walk-Through Metal Detector (WTMD) and Handheld Metal Detector (HHMD), again adapted to Covid19 guidelines. Consequently, a multiple verification process is in place whereby all personnel must walk through the WTMD a total of three times. This is to ensure that the need to conduct a secondary search using the HHMD is minimized and safeguards our staff from breaching the two-meter distance rules unless required to. When a HHMD search is required, the procedure has been adapted from front facing to a new procedure from the side and rear to mitigate the risk of transmission. All the while we must simultaneously ensure the process itself is still thorough and we will detect any prohibited items from entering a site.
There are of course incidents that happen within premises that require our security teams to respond and this would generally be when our Officers are most at risk from Covid19 exposure. Consequently, we have implemented additional measures to ensure their safety when responding to incidents, which includes the implementation of additional PPE, such as goggles and gloves. Similarly, responding to First Aid incidents has also been adapted, also with the inclusion of additional PPE and, in line with current guidance, not performing rescue breaths or mouth-to-mouth ventilation but perform chest compressions only if required.
The role of our security staff can be a difficult one and especially now with generally more responsibility, additional duties and existing processes being regularly amended as guidelines on the pandemic are communicated. In line with Key Performance Indicators, our duties and additional Covid19 specific duties are regularly audited to ensure we perform to a continually high standard. Audits are conducted internally by our customer and by an external supplier, who conduct covert penetration testing to the same standard across all premises.
Overall, whilst adapting to regular changing Covid19 requirements, the security teams across the country have done an excellent job in continuing to perform their core duties to create a safe and secure environment for everyone entering our customers premises.
