By Abbey Petkar, Managing Director, Magenta Security – and elected member of the S12 Security Guarding Leadership Group
I want to be direct about where the information in this article comes from. As a member of the S12 Security Guarding Leadership Group – a collective of twelve senior private security executives that works directly with the Home Office, the Security Industry Authority and the Security Minister – I have been part of the conversations shaping mandatory business licensing policy in the UK security sector. What follows is not speculation. It is as close to a first-hand briefing as you’ll get outside those rooms.
Currently, any company can set up as a security business in the UK. Individual guards must hold a personal SIA licence, but the company itself faces no mandatory licensing or quality threshold. This creates a structural problem: a company with no accreditation, no management systems and no meaningful quality assurance can legally supply security services as long as its guards hold individual licences.
The consequence is a market with enormous quality variation, regular incidents of labour exploitation and clients who discover problems only after something goes wrong. Mandatory business licensing is designed to close this gap – requiring companies to meet a defined threshold to operate at all, rather than making quality certification a voluntary differentiator.
The S12 Group has been advocating for mandatory business licensing as a policy objective for several years. The core proposal is that security companies should be required to hold a minimum quality certification – broadly equivalent to SIA Approved Contractor Scheme accreditation – as a condition of trading. Companies that cannot meet the threshold would be unable to operate.
The Group has engaged directly with government on the legislative framework, the timeline, the threshold definition and the transitional arrangements for the sector. It has also worked with the SIA on what the compliance and enforcement mechanism would look like in practice.
Mandatory business licensing is no longer a proposal on a wish list. It has moved into active policy development. Without disclosing privileged deliberations, I can say that the direction of travel is clear and the pace has accelerated. Security buyers should be planning on the basis that mandatory licensing will land within the next parliamentary cycle – not beyond it.
What this means practically: the threshold is expected to be set at a level consistent with meaningful quality accreditation. Companies that currently operate without NSI accreditation, SIA ACS status, or direct employment of their workforce will face a choice between raising their standards substantially or leaving the market.
The immediate implication for buyers is supply chain risk. If your current security provider does not already hold the accreditations likely to be required under mandatory licensing – NSI Gold, top-tier SIA ACS, directly employed workforce, adequate insurance – they may not be able to trade under the new regime. That is a contract risk, a transition risk and potentially an operational risk if the change happens mid-contract.
The sensible steps now are: audit your current provider’s accreditation level, employment model and insurance position; understand your contract exit and review terms; and, if there is material doubt about your provider’s ability to meet a higher threshold, begin the process of market review before mandatory licensing forces the issue.
Magenta already meets the standard likely to be required under mandatory licensing: NSI Gold across four service categories top 5% SIA ACS, directly employed workforce, £10 million+ public liability insurance. We did not build to the minimum. We built to a standard we believe represents genuine quality in the market. Mandatory licensing will require others to meet it.
I am aware that “it’s coming, be ready” is a phrase the security industry has used before without delivery. I want to be clear: the engagement I have had as part of S12 is different in character from general industry advocacy. This is active policy work with government, not lobbying from the outside. The timeline is real. Planning on the assumption that nothing will change is no longer the safe option.
Book a call with the Magenta team by calling 0800 772 3786 or by completing the form below.
We’ll give you a straight assessment of your current provider’s position and what you should be planning for.
Magenta Security has held NSI Gold accreditation and BSIA membership for more than 25 years and ranks among the top 5% of SIA Approved Contractors in the UK. Established in 1995, the company directly employs its security officers and supports every contract through its 24/7 National Control Room, £10 million public liability cover and 100% money-back guarantee (subject to contractual terms and conditions).
