Stop Speed Dating your Security
The Operational Pressures
This February, most people are thinking about bouquets and chocolates. You’re probably thinking about rotas, risk assessments and whether your security team is ready for the year ahead. With major leadership changes underway this month at SIA (Security Industry Authority) and tougher expectations on training and licensing coming through, “cheap and cheerful” guarding is starting to look less like a smart saving and more like a risky fling.
SIA is entering a new chapter, with fresh leadership and a renewed focus on public safety, training quality, and business standards. That means more pressure on security providers to prove that licences are current, refresher training is complete, and personnel are genuinely fit for the job and not just badged and available. For clients, this is a turning point: either stay in a casual, price driven arrangement, or move towards a recruitment partner who treats your sites, people, and brand with the seriousness they deserve.
On paper, regulatory updates look technical and that’s no surprise when they focus on revised licence linked qualifications, mandatory refresher training, tighter checks, and increased scrutiny of training providers. On the ground they translate into very practical questions for you. Who, for example, on your sites has up to date first aid? Who has completed the latest conflict management and vulnerability modules? Who is due for renewal in the next six months and what happens if they miss it? If your security recruitment partner can’t answer those questions quickly and confidently, the risk sits with your organisation or business.
In this environment, the ideal security recruitment specialist isn’t just the one who can find you “someone for Saturday night.” You need a partner who can map your risk profile, match it to the right blend of licences and skills, and then back that up with robust recruitment and screening. That means deeper background checks, behaviour based interviewing, and a clear line of sight from regulatory requirements to the officers standing at your front door. It also means honest conversations about what good looks like and not just telling you what’s easiest to staff.
From bodies on doors to integrated specialists
The days of “a warm body in a hi-viz” are numbered. As training standards rise, it makes far more sense to invest in integrated roles, for example, officers who can protect, welcome, and reassure in the same shift. Think of a door supervisor who is also your customer service lead, a control room operator who understands data protection, a front-of-house guard who can spot vulnerability and defuse tension early. These multi-skilled professionals give you more value from every hour worked, and they fit far better with how modern venues, workplaces and public spaces operate.
Five questions to evaluate if your security partner is worth committing to
If you’re wondering whether your current relationship is built to last, start here:
·Can they show you, today, the current screening status of officers on your contract, including current, in-date qualifications?
Do they go beyond basic licence checks to understand each candidate’s track record, attitude and fit for your environment?
Are they proactively talking to you about upcoming regulatory changes and what they mean for your sites, or do you only hear from them when there’s a problem?
Are they helping you redesign roles to be more integrated and specialist, or still selling security as a simple headcount?
When something goes wrong, do you feel like you’re working with a partner who owns the issue with you, or just a supplier defending a KPI?
Honest answers to these questions will tell you a lot about whether you’re getting a genuine partnership or just a transactional service.
How MATCHUP helps you build a relationship that lasts
At MATCHUP we believe security recruitment should feel like a trusted relationship, not a last-minute purchase order. Our team lives and breathes this industry, but we never forget that every badge represents a person, a workplace and a community to keep safe. We focus on matching our clients with properly screened, appropriately trained and genuinely people-centred officers, then provide ongoing support as regulations and risks evolve.
That means helping you understand the impact of new SIA priorities, designing roles that add value beyond basic guarding and making sure you always know who is licensed, trained and ready. It also means being human. We value clear conversations, no jargon, and a team that’s as easy to work with as they are serious about getting it right.
This February it might be time to ask yourself a simple question. Are you in a healthy, long-term relationship with your security recruitment agency or is it time to find a partner who’s as committed to your protection as you are to your people?