Orisec and RISCO join Skills for Security’s push to boost talent pipeline

For some time now, the skills and apprenticeship body that operates under the umbrella of the British Security Industry Association has been on a stated mission to attract new talent to the sector, while maintaining the professionalism and competence that keep standards high and end users safe.

Importantly, Skills for Security has been highlighting the key challenges involved such as confronting the lack of career pathways, recruitment and retention issues and the ever-widening skills gap (with an estimated current shortfall of circa 30,000 skilled security systems engineers).

Together with the support of manufacturers and employers in the sector, Skills for Security kick-started the initiative that’s designed to effectively fund the future talent pipeline.

Skills for Security’s chair, Simon Banks, commented: “I’m so pleased to see manufacturers like Orisec and RISCO, as well as employers, duly recognising the fact that investing in the sector will not only provide rewards from the point of view of a revitalised workforce, but also assist in ensuring a prosperous future for the entire value chain. We already have a pipeline of 1,000 apprentices live on the apprenticeship programme. With the help of our sponsors, we’re targeting a figure of 3,000 in the near future.”

Most recently, Skills for Security shone a spotlight on the industry in front of thousands of school and college leavers at the National Apprenticeship Show held in Liverpool. More events are going to follow this year.

Technical support and training

For its part, Orisec is a fast-growing UK manufacturer and distributor of intruder alarm equipment. It’s a business that prides itself on the delivery of outstanding technical support and training.

Jon Green, CEO at Orisec, explained: “We are absolutely delighted to be working alongside Skills for Security in ensuring that the future generation of the security industry is educated to the very highest standards. We proudly consider this to be an investment in the industry and one that aligns strongly with our own ethos of providing comprehensive training for all installers.”

Green added: “By sponsoring Skills for Security, we endeavour to provide apprentices with premium learning opportunities and industry-leading UK manufactured equipment.”

Itself a leading provider of professional cloud-based security solutions for the UK and Ireland’s commercial, industrial and residential markets, RISCO’s systems encompass hybrid intruder alarm solution LightSYS+. This will now be integrated into all six Skills for Security Training Centres and incorporated into the Fire, Emergency and Security Systems Technician curriculum, providing apprentices with hands-on experience and knowledge of the latest security technology and preparing them for a successful career in the industry.

Future Security Careers

The RISCO-Skills for Security collaboration coincides with the release of the Home Office’s Future Security Careers brochure. This follows on from research conducted by the Joint Security and Resilience Centre, which revealed that security businesses are more likely to report gaps in the skills of their workers than other companies.

Mark Taylor, RISCO’s UK and Ireland managing director, observed: “RISCO takes great pride in collaborating with Skills for Security and is committed to supporting apprenticeships. We are dedicated to playing our part in addressing the shortage of engineers and the skills gap in the security industry, in turn helping to nurture the next generation of talent."

David Scott, managing director at Skills for Security, responded: “We are thrilled to have RISCO on board as a sponsor and partner. This collaboration will not only benefit our apprentices, but also the entire security industry as we work determinedly together to address the skills crisis.”

One of RISCO’s own apprentices, namely Mehedi Hussain, recently completed his Skills for Security apprenticeship, duly achieving a distinction. Hussain has now joined the company’s expanding UK-based technical support team as a technical support technician, whereupon he will handle some of the 23,000 calls received annually and provide professional security system installers with first-line support. The department also delivers a comprehensive programme of bespoke contractor technical training events, webinars and videos.

*Interested parties who would like to join the Skills for Security initiative can visit www.skills4security.com/sponsorship for further information