Mitie wins contract to provide security services for DWP estate

The security guarding contract is valued at £136 million per annum and the Security Control Centre is valued at a further £3 million per annum. The contracts will initially run for seven years and five years respectively with the option to extend both contracts for ten years.

Mitie will play a vital role in ensuring that Jobcentres are a safe and welcoming environment for all those that work in or visit them. Through critical security services designed to safeguard the DWP’s sites across England, Scotland and Wales, these contracts build on the presence Mitie already has, enabling safer communities across the country.

More than 24,000 Mitie security officers already protect some of Britain’s biggest organisations, most iconic landmarks and Critical National Infrastructure. The new contract will employ around 3,000 security officers. Officers will be connected to the newly designed and bespoke Security Control Centre located at Mitie’s Security Operations Centre in Northampton.

Monitoring services

The additional contract will see Mitie design, build and operate the dedicated 24/7 Security Control Centre to provide monitoring services across the estate and will be integrated with a specialist Access Control Centre in Gloucester operated by GBE Converge (the fire and security systems provider and part of Mitie since 2023). This set-up will enable rapid response to intruders, panic, fire and other critical alarms with trained colleagues on hand to provide 24/7 support.

As part of its commitment to create better places and thriving communities alongside the contracts, Mitie will deliver a comprehensive programme of community engagement, employment support and workforce inclusion. A dedicated social value team – part of Mitie’s pledge to uplift one million lives through social mobility, inclusion and skills training – will lead these initiatives aimed at tackling economic inequality, supporting underrepresented groups and creating long-term employment opportunities within the community.

Commitments include working with local schools to identify future apprentices, attending Careers Fairs for military leavers and close collaboration with the Mitie Foundation and its Ready2Work Programme to bring long-term unemployed individuals into work.

Vital role  

Jason Towse, managing director of the Business Services division at Mitie, said: “With a presence in nearly every town and city across the UK, the DWP delivers services that impact almost everyone at some point in their lives. Mitie’s security teams will play a vital role in supporting the DWP’s core mission of helping individuals access the employment support they need, while ensuring communities are safe and welcoming.”

Towse concluded: “Working with the DWP, we will bring a step change by deploying trained security professionals supported by robust and intelligence-led services designed to deter and detect potential threats. We’re proud to enable such a forward-facing approach.”

*Further information is available online at www.mitie.com