THERE’S BEEN much talk recently of clamping down, for want of a better term, on rogue clampers.  Justifiably so.  Many are ruthless vultures preying on easy targets.  But what of the legitimate ones?  Do they deserve the opprobrium heaped upon their cowboy colleagues?

Of course not.  But that doesn’t mean they don’t get it.

I was clamped last week.  My own fault, entirely.  Returning after an absence of several years to a favourite meter-free enclave in Dublin city centre, I didn’t bother checking the signs before parking.  Assumption is a dangerous thing.

Arriving back hours later, I was greeted by the yellow jaws of doom enveloping my wheel.  Worse still, I was roundly scoffed at by a clump of taxi drivers gleefully pointing out the freshly-erected signs showing my secret oasis had been turned into a rank.

After I phoned in a payment of €80, a pair of clampers arrived to free me.  One approached with the trepidation of a farmer checking on a wounded bull.

His face contorted into confusion as I greeted him with a cheery wave and an admission of my stupidity.  To confuse him even further, I motioned to him as he drove off that he had forgotten to switch on his van’s headlights.  Poor man nearly crashed.

His reaction saddened me.  He had evidently been conditioned by past experience to expect the worst.  Abuse, threats, even violence.  And him just a bloke doing his best to make ends meet.

So a plea to all motorists.  Be nice to legitimate clampers, for they are entitled to our support and respect.

They provide a valuable service to society by keeping roads clear, nabbing moral midgets who park illegally in disabled spaces and teaching idiots like me valuable lessons about making assumptions.

But most importantly of all, they give miserable taxi drivers something to smile about.

Suzi says: So perhaps, the Govenment ought to take heed and realise that there are many professional companies who do actually provide a necessary service to land owners who have no other recourse.  And, perhaps they ought to remember, that it’s only those who have been clamped who complain about it …… not those who take the time to read the signs, pay for our parking and not generally abuse or ignore the land owners rights!

e-Fill has been designed to make it easier and quicker for applicants to complete their application form.  It also has built in verification to reduce the likelihood of the form being completed incorrectly and returned to the applicant.

Applicants fill in the form online, then print, sign and post it manually along with the required supporting documents.

Users register on the SIA website and log in to use the service. If they have previously submitted an application, the online form pre-populates information such as the applicant’s name, date of birth, town of birth, email address, postcode and national insurance number. The system also allows security providers to complete the form on behalf of their staff.

SIA Director of Service Delivery Stephen McCormick said:

“We are delighted to offer this new service which makes it easier and quicker for applicants to complete their application form. Applicants can track the progress of their application and have online guidance at each stage of the process. The contact centre also has a dedicated option for those who need assistance using the new system.
The launch follows months of testing and trialling to ensure the facility is working correctly and effectively. The development of e-Fill is part of our commitment to introduce e-services and provide a modern service to our customers.”

Suzi says: This great news.  It will make it much easier to complete applications and will hopefully ensure less applications are returned for being incomplete.  As a company sponsor, we at beSmart Training welcome this new intiative.  It will make my job much easier and hopefully quicker too.  What it won’t do is ensure people provide the correct identification which is still a major problem with these applications.   beSmart offers regular SIA licensing courses for door supervision and vehicle immobilisation.  We also have just gained approval to offer the CCTV courses too and will be starting to run those towards the end of September.  For more information on any of our courses go to our website at www.besmart-training.co.uk, or call Suzi on 020 7237 6007.

Overall, feedback from the industry showed that while there was some interest in a more integrated approach, the option for a single generic licence card did not receive widespread support.

At present, SIA licence cards are specific to each sector.  Operatives working in more than one sector may need to be issued with multiple licences.

The two options set out in the consultation were:

• to introduce a single generic licence card covering all of the licensable activities that the holder is qualified to undertake; or
• to continue to issue sector-specific and multiple licences.

SIA Director of Strategy and Corporate Services, Hazel Russell said:

“I would like to thank respondents for their contributions to this informal consultation. The responses did not provide clear support for the development of a non-sector specific licence, so at present we will not be making changes to the licences that we issue.

However, we will now reconsider how we have defined the ‘manned guarding’ sectors and we will take account of the consultation responses in identifying opportunities for limiting the requirement for multiple licences and for reducing administrative burdens.  This, combined with our ongoing customer service improvements will help to ensure that any future changes will continue to be stakeholder-led.”

Suzi says: I assume that redefining manned guarding will introduce new sectors within guarding such as “retail” security and “construction site” security, etc.  Will that mean yet another day’s training I ask myself.  We shall see.  But, rest assured, we will let you know if and when it happens.

A training company in the south-west is now offering vehicle immobiliser courses where you turn up for one day, take a test (but don’t worry – they’ll even give you the answers to the questions), and then you’re qualified.  What a joke, and the awarding body don’t seem to give a s**t.

No wonder this industry is populated by rogues and scoundrels.  It really gets my goat.  Not only do we have rogue clampers, but rogue training companies too.  I hope they’re bl**dy proud of themselves, but I’m not going to name and shame…… they know who they are.

We, and by we I mean beSmart Training, offer the training for vehicle immobilisation so that individuals can apply for an SIA licence to practice.  We run legitimate, four-day courses, where you can actually be taught by someone who knows the industry and learn something that will be useful.  Hopefully, it gives you the knowledge and skills to make you a decent, professional, individual if you take up the wheel-clamping profession.

Vehicle Immobilisers will always be viewed as “the scum of the earth” by everyone who has ever been clamped – it’s understandable.  But clampers thank those lovely people with all their hearts, because without them the profession wouldn’t exist.  Imagine if we lived in a world where everyone just parked wherever they liked without penalty – GRID LOCK.

If anyone out there actually wants some excellent, decent, proper training, do please give us a call.  We operate from our training centre in London and run regular vehicle immobiliser courses.  Our next available course date is Tuesday 10th to Friday 13th August 2010.  You can get more details from our website at www.besmart-training.co.uk or call Sue on 0207 237 6007.

New training, available from 1st June, means that candidates now wishing to train as door supervisors will be required to pass a one-day physical intervention skills training session, as well as pass three examinations, in order to gain the qualification required for a Security Industry Authority licence to practice.

The new training is modular and brings the door supervisor training in line with Security Guard, CCTV and vehicle immobiliser training which was updated in March this year.

The door supervisor course now consists of four units:

Unit 1:        Working in the Private Security Industry
Unit 2:        Working as a Door Supervisor
Unit 3:        Conflict Management for the Private Security Industry
Unit 4:        Physical Intervention Skills for the Private Security Industry

Units one and three are common units across Security Guarding, CCTV, Door Supervision and Vehicle Immobilisation.  This means that individuals only have to take the assessment for these units once.  It will make it easier if an individual wishes to get multiple SIA licences.  For instance, if you pass all four units for door supervision, and at a future date wish to get an SIA (Security Industry Authority) vehicle immobiliser licence, you would only have to take the unit specific training for vehicle immobilisation which would be a one-day course.

As much of the legislation and operational procedures are the same across the security sectors, the SIA hope this new modular system will make the training process for SIA licences more accessible and simpler for individuals wishing to enter the industry.

Door supervision is currently the only sector which is required to undertake physical intervention skills training, and currently only new entrants are required to comply.  However, the Government are considering whether to introduce these physical intervention skills as a compulsory upgrade for existing licensed door supervisors.  However, if they are introduced it will not be before June 2011.

The physical intervention skills focus on non-violent, non-aggressive techniques which are intended to defuse conflict and violence rather than escalate situations.

It deals with:

*    Disengagement – this element focuses on basic defensive skills

• Assault avoidance and evasion
• Releases from grips and grabs
• Rescue skills

*    Holding – this element focuses on restrictive intervention

• Escorting skills
• Holding skills

All techniques are designed to be flexible, easy to learn and safe for door supervisors, customers and staff alike.

beSmart Training was instrumental in the assisting the BBC with their recent reporting of this new training.  Please see following links.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/newsbeat/hi/front_page/newsid_10180000/newsid_10186100/10186122.stm

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/10201082.stm

Two actors visited ten pubs in Bexley, southeast London, and managed to get served in every one of them despite reeking of alcohol, slurring their words, fumbling their change and shoving other customers on their way to the bar.

They later repeated the performance at a conference for local publicans and bar managers who insisted, unanimously, that they would be refused service and asked to leave. They were stunned when a senior police officer revealed: “You’ve already served them.”

Under current legislation, bar staff caught serving alcohol to intoxicated drinkers are liable for an £80 fixed penalty notice or a fine of up to £1,000.

Although the bar staff served the hired actors they can not be prosecuted because they were not actually drunk.

John Madden, chairman of the licensed trade body Guild of Master Victuallers, condemned the exercise as a waste of police time.

He said: ”It is a terrible idea and I am surprised the police think it is worth doing. They cannot prosecute anyone for serving an actor who is pretending to be drunk.

”I’m really not happy with this. At the end of the day it’s entrapment, but it’s entrapment where the staff haven’t done anything wrong because the actor isn’t even drunk.”

The fake drunks were hired from a local amateur dramatic group by Bexley Borough Council and Bexley Police, part of the Metropolitan Police, ahead of a seminar with 100 landlords, club managers and restaurant owners, on drink-related crime.

Chief Inspector Stephen Murrant, who organised the initiative, said: “I am disappointed that despite our efforts to educate and support licensees that staff saw fit to serve two outrageously behaved drunken actors.

“This has come as no surprise. In a recent survey of bar staff carried out in the borough, 98 per cent said they saw drunk customers on some or most of their shifts.

“We routinely monitor what goes on in all our licensed premises and we will be robust in our actions if we find licensees or their staff fuelling alcohol related disorder by serving customers who are drunk.”

Clive Cain, head of public protection at Bexley Council, said: ”Whilst it is illegal to serve a drunk, the law does not define when someone is drunk. This pioneering initiative has demonstrated the ease with which drunks can be served. It has highlighted the urgent need for improvements in training, advice and managerial support for bar staff.”

Section 141 of the Licensing Act 2003 bans the sale of alcohol to a person who is drunk. Bexley Police say the force rarely prosecutes landlords but reports findings to the council, which takes such instances into consideration when considering renewing licences to serve alcohol.

Scott Mackenzie, manager of the Blue Anchor in Bexley, claims it is getting more difficult for landlords because an increasing number of customers are drinking heavily before going to the pub. He claims cheap alcohol sold by supermarkets is the real problem.

He said: ”In my car park, every day we have to clear up bottles of this and that, which people drank before they came to the pub.”

Bexley Police are planning to step up their undercover initiative for the World Cup.

Suzi says:  This does highlight a problem with a lack of awareness and training within licensed premises.  It is ultimately the responsibility of the Designated Premises Supervisor (DPS) to ensure that staff are aware of the law and the consequences of “ignoring” the law.  With the grandfather rights that were handed out when the Licensing Act 2003 was introduced, many DPS, managers and other Personal Licence Holders are actually totally unaware of what the law says.  There are several courses which are ideal for bar staff and other employees of licensed premises that cover the Act and would also cover a premises with their “due diligence”.  beSmart Training offer courses for Personal Licence Holders as well as the BIIAB Award in Responsible Alcohol Retail (ideal for staff who don’t require a personal licence), and the BIIAB Level 2 National Certificate for Designate Premises Supervisors.

This is the last course we will be running that has only two exams – as from 1st June the new course comes in and there will be three exams, AND a trainer assessed unit.

If you are looking for a first class training course for door supervision, you’ve come to the right place.  beSmart has a fantastic pass rate and you’ll get those fantastic pass rates within only 2 days of taking your exams.  That means that you’ll be able to apply for your licence within two days.

Call Sue on 020 7237 6007 to book, or visit our website at www.besmart-training.co.uk for more information.

It has not yet been decided if physical intervention will be compulsory refresher training for licensed door supervisors, but following the consultation earlier this year, there is an announcement expected in the next few months.

Why not enrol now and be ahead of the game.  Also become trained to the same level as door supervisors WILL be trained to from June 2010 onwards.

beSmart’s physical intervention course is accepted as accredited prior learning for the new door supervisor qualification and only costs £100.00 plus VAT for the one-day course, including all handbooks and certification.

If you’re interested, please call Sue on 020 7237 6007, or book online at www.besmart-training.co.uk/physical-intervention-training/.

It is an employers legal obligation to ensure that first kits are available to all their employees and customers at all times.  So don’t delay…. check it now.  If you’re not sure what should be in your first aid kit, below is a list of minimum suggested contents:

• A guidance leaflet
• 20 adhesive dressings (individually wrapped and assorted sizes)
• 2 sterile eye pads
• 6 triangular bandages (individually wrapped and sterile)
• 6 medium sterile wound dressings (individually wrapped and unmedicated)
• 2 large sterile wound dressings (individually wrapped and unmedicated)
• 6 safety pins
• Disposable gloves

Also, if your risk assessment concludes a requirement, employers may include additional materials such as:

• Blunt tipped scissors
• Non-alcoholic wipes
• Micropore tape
• Disposable apron
• Protective equipment
• Clinical waste bag
• Special burns dressings

Remember, no creams, lotions or potions are permitted.  If you have no fresh mains tap water available, you should also consider having sterile eyewash available for the purpose of eye irrigation.  (Do not use sterile water if the seal has previously been broken, if it has already been used on another individual or if it is out-of-date.)

Whilst you’re at it, why not check that all your first aid certificates are still valid.  First Aid Certificates are valid for a maximum of three years so should be checked on a regular basis.  The Health and Safety Executive now also recommend that annual refresher training be undertaken to keep key skills practiced and up-to-date.

beSmart Training run both the one-day Emergency First Aid at Work and the three-day First Aid at Work courses at their London based training centre.   Please call Sue on 020 7237 6007 for prices and dates.

The article says that the Security Industry Authority (SIA), which regulates doorstaff, has agreed to take part in a Home Office campaign to crackdown on the problem.

It’s recognition that doorstaff are able to confiscate ID if they have a procedure for dealing with the documents – the question had been open to debate.

It also represents a victory for the PASS (proof of age standards) scheme because the SIA has also agreed to include awareness of the scheme on its doorstaff training courses.  PASS had previously complained that doorstaff often didn’t recognise accredited cards.

The initiative, in association with PASS, advises young people that if they are caught using fake ID, or ID that’s owned by someone else, they could have it confiscated and may be prosecuted.

The SIA is urging door supervisors to confiscate false ID and hand them over to the police, who will then return the documents to the relevant authority.

Baroness Ruth Henig, chairman at the SIA said: “We are advising licensees and door staff to help ensure fake or false IDs are confiscated and handed to the police.

“Trained and professional SIA-licensed door supervisors play an important role in creating a safe environment for the public when visiting pubs and clubs across the UK.

“Door staff can also contribute to reducing under-age drinking.  Our approved door supervisor training ensures door supervisors are made aware of the PASS scheme.”

PASS chairman Robert Humphreys added: “This campaign is timely and most welcome.

“Many underage young people often see getting past door staff or being served as something of a game, but for those responsible for enforcing the law it’s no joke – in fact a mistake can easily cost them their jobs and even get them a criminal record.

“The clarity of the message is vital – attempting to break the law is unacceptable and could get you in serious trouble.”

The fake ID posters can be downloaded from the Home Office website www.crimereduction.homeoffice.gov.uk

Suzi says: lets hope this doesn’t open a whole new can of worms.  Just because a door supervisor is licensed doesn’t make him the right person to confiscate people’s identification.  I mean, just because you have a driving licence doesn’t necessarily mean you a good driver and keep to the rules of the road, does it – it just means you haven’t been caught yet.  I hope the Home Office doesn’t get these people into a whole heap of trouble!