On 5 November 2025 the Security Industry Authority opened the biggest review of licence-linked qualifications the UK private security sector has seen in more than a decade. By spring 2027, the qualifications that sit behind every door supervisor, security guard, CCTV operator and close protection badge will look different. For anyone who buys security services in the UK, this is the moment the workforce on your contract begins to change.
The review is the closing piece of the SIA’s 2023 to 2026 strategic plan, and it dovetails with the regulator’s wider preparation for Martyn’s Law. Together they signal a shift from a tick-box licensing regime to a competency-led one, with safety-critical skills, counter-terror awareness and stronger trainer standards at the centre.
What the SIA is reviewing
The qualifications review covers the licence-linked training for every regulated role: door supervision, security guarding, public space surveillance (CCTV), close protection, cash and valuables in transit, and vehicle immobilisation in Northern Ireland. According to the SIA’s published notice and confirmed in Counter Terror Business and Get Licensed coverage, the scope examines:
- Core safety-critical content, including physical intervention and specialist searching techniques.
- Counter-terror content, building on the new modules added to refresher training in April 2026.
- Emerging issues such as handling social media “auditors”, drone awareness and new operational technologies.
- Spiking awareness and victim support, which has already become a required element of door supervision training.
- English language testing, first aid demonstrations and the standards expected of training providers themselves.
SIA Chief Executive Michelle Russell described the work as a “strategic reset” for the industry. The phrase matters. The regulator is signalling that incremental updates have run their course and that what comes next will look meaningfully different from the current Level 2 award most door supervisors and security officers hold today.
The 18-month timetable
The SIA has published a clear roadmap. The engagement and consultation phase ran from November 2025 to January 2026. Draft qualification specifications went out for public consultation in early spring 2026. Final specifications are expected in summer 2026. Training providers then have from autumn 2026 to spring 2027 to redesign their courses, retrain assessors and prepare delivery. The new qualifications go live in spring 2027 and become mandatory for new applicants from that point onward.
Existing licences remain valid through their normal three-year cycle. The new content will reach incumbent officers through mandatory refresher training at renewal, which is the same mechanism the SIA used to roll out the counter-terror modules introduced in April 2026.
The Martyn’s Law alignment
The qualifications review does not sit on its own. It runs alongside the SIA’s preparation for its new role as regulator under the Terrorism (Protection of Premises) Act 2025, better known as Martyn’s Law. The SIA opened its consultation on the draft section 12 statutory guidance on 15 April 2026, and the legislation is expected to come into force in spring 2027 – the same window in which the new qualifications go live.
The regulator has confirmed it is building a new internal structure with more than 100 operational posts dedicated to Martyn’s Law: guidance, compliance casework, inspections and enforcement. Standard-tier premises (200 to 799 capacity) and enhanced-tier premises (800 plus) will be expected to demonstrate practical protective measures, and the people delivering those measures will, in many cases, be SIA-licensed officers. It is no coincidence that the qualifications review puts counter-terror awareness, behavioural detection and incident response at the centre of the new content.
What this means for security buyers
If you procure manned guarding, door supervision or close protection in the UK, the review has three practical implications worth planning for.
The supply-side skills baseline is rising. By spring 2027, every new officer entering the industry will hold a qualification designed around safety-critical performance rather than rote knowledge. Existing officers will be picking up the same content through their refresher cycle. For buyers, this means the floor on competency will be higher than it is today – but the price floor will rise with it, as training providers absorb new costs.
Contract specifications should be reviewed. If your security specification was written more than two years ago, it likely refers to outdated qualification names, course hours or trainer standards. We recommend procurement and facilities teams pencil in a review of any active security contract before renewal in 2027.
Martyn’s Law readiness is now a guarding question. Venues in the standard and enhanced tiers will need procedures rehearsed by competent personnel. The qualifications review is the regulator’s way of making sure those personnel exist. Buyers should ask any prospective supplier how they plan to align refresher training with the new content as it lands.
Where SIA-regulated firms add value
The review reinforces a point that is sometimes lost in cost-led procurement: an SIA-licensed officer is not a commodity. The Authority is investing real effort in raising what that licence guarantees, and reputable suppliers will invest in their officers to match. Our team operates entirely on SIA-licensed personnel, with refresher training tracked at the officer level, and we have been participating in the engagement phase of the review so we are ready when the new specifications land.
Need a security review?
If you want to understand how the SIA’s 2026 strategic review will affect your security contract, or if you are preparing for Martyn’s Law compliance and want a competency-led supplier in place ahead of spring 2027, our team can help.
Call us on 020 3700 0967, email info@secureonsitesecurity.co.uk or use our contact form for a no-obligation site review.
Related services: manned guarding, security guard hire, close protection.
Recent Comments