Becoming a trained and qualified security officer can provide a great range of work and the potential to develop a varied and successful career.

There is a wide number of businesses, organisations and premises that use security services for various different requirements, from door supervision and event security through to alarm response and patrol services.

Crucially, the security industry is very well regulated and so there is a clear pathway of training, licensing and background checks that ensure that professional security officers are fully qualified and can be trusted to deliver the best levels of service.

Established more than 40 years ago, Zed Security and Guarding has always held to the highest standards in recruitment and training, ensuring that every member of our team delivers top quality security services to businesses, events and organisations across the East of England. Each and every member of our security team is not only SIA licenced, a legal requirement within the industry, but also strictly vetted beyond industry standards in each area of security work.

So how does your journey begin to become a security officer?

The first step is to ensure you have the right level of training and to do this you will need to apply to attend a government-approved security officer course. These courses will not only help you build your knowledge around the role of a security officer and what is involved, but also keep you up to date with the latest principals of good practice in how you protect yourself and those around you. 

Once you have completed a government-approved security officer course, you are free to make your application for a Security Industry Authority (SIA) licence. The application process will include a background check and you will need to have up to date ID documentation.

While a government-approved security officer course is an essential starting point and will give you a good basis of understanding that allows you to apply for a licence, for a skilled security professional it is only the beginning. Even with an SIA licence there will always be additional skills to learn, from the way you interact with customers and members of the public, through to observing and reducing potential risks before they have the chance to develop.

At Zed Security and Guarding our security staff are actively encouraged to constantly continue in their training and skills development, going well beyond the industry standard. Zed’s ground-breaking employee career development programme helps support employees improve their skills and develop their careers to be the best security officer they can be. 

From improving your physical conditioning through to staying up to date with your first aid response skills, there are plenty of areas in which a security officer needs to stay up to date with the latest training, even outside the skills specific to the wide range of security and guarding solutions offered by Zed Security and Guarding.

If you are interested in exploring the possibility of working as a security officer then head over to our training page for more information about our training courses to set you on the path to a career in security services.