Licensee in Scotland prosecuted for operating door staff without SIA licenses
A female Dunfermline licensee and her door staff have been charged by police after being found working without Security Industry Authority licences. Checks were carried out across six security sites in the Dunfermline area last Friday [1 May]. SIA investigators and officers from Fife Police inspected 13 security guards and door supervisors working at a pub and industrial and commercial sites. By law, door staff working at pubs and clubs must hold a frontline SIA licence and display this while working. If they are employed directly by a venue as staff member, rather than through a contractor, the manager must hold a non-frontline licence. Christy Hopkins, an SIA Head of Investigation said: “This operation was to test compliance levels in the area and raise awareness of licensing regulations. Whilst the majority of security sites visited complied with the legislation, it was disappointing that some offences were detected. We will continue to work with our police partners to ensure licensees and those deploying security operatives comply with the law.” A/PS Paul Buttercase of Fife Constabulary Community Safety Department said: 'We are keen to ensure that anyone deploying, or employed as, security staff both in licensed premises and commercial premises are operating within the legislation. Fife Constabulary work closely with licensed premises through schemes such as PubWatch and Best Bar None to create a safe environment for the community to socialise. Part of this is to deploy properly licensed door staff. The legislation has been in place since 2007 and I would urge anyone involved in deploying or acting as a security operative to make themselves fully aware of the full implications and provisions of the Act as we will continue to work in partnership with the Security Industry Authority to ensure compliance.' |
