site clearance
Conference Security Guards
it is hard to believe that I was once a security guard, when you consider that I spend 8 hours a day in front a computer screen. Although the job was only temporary whilst I tried to obtain more qualifications, it was meant for real situations and was a real job.
My main claim to fame was being an official security guard during the Party Political conference of the Labour Party in 2006. It was not enough for the Labour lot to need the police force to protect them, they also needed private force of security guard specialists to give extra help. Much of this thinking was in place as a result of the IRA bomb on the Grand Hotel in 1984. Obviously this caused massive damage inside the hotel, and almost wiped out the prime minister and most of her cabinet. The political scene may change, terrorists networks rise up and then dissolve, but some policies are set in stone until the next major event.
Security guards work together with the police force, who find it hard not to look down upon their ‘inferiors’ from the private sector. The irony is that many of the private security guards were once employed by the police force and know the structure well.
The day I had at the Party conference was one that will take some beating, and stay in my mind for ever. For some unknown reason I thought my duties would not be any more stressful than stopping people from dropping litter, or moving on motorists. Sometimes a small number of people try to drive up to the entrance of the conference, just to ask directions to the clearly signposted carparks! It takes quite a bit of driving to successfully negotiate the concrete barriers specially erected for the conference, but there are the few that succeed.
Within an hour of the beginning of the conference, a boisterous crowd was beginning to arrive and they didn’t seem like friendly protesters. The security company told us that they were a committed group hell bent on disruption in advance of the parliamentary debate on foxhunting. The thoughts that were going through my mind as I was being sworn at and spat upon, was all the site clearance work that would be needed after they had all gone home!
Big money in vacant property security
A problem exists with the UK for the government to create a climate of affordable housing for its population. The poor supply of housing has been blamed on the steep price rises, making home ownership almost impossible for many people.
There is great pressure on housing associations and local councils to build 3 million new homes by 2020. This has great consequences for the countyside and the environment in general. The issue is contentious and divides opiniion, allowing the idea of ‘nimbyism’, aka ‘not in my backyard’.
The Pre-Budget Report was commissioned by the government, and promised to look at the utilisation of vacant propety. According to the Empty Homes Agency, there are currently 840,000 vacant properties in the UK. A further 420,000 are registered on the National Land Use Database. This comprises of pubs, commercial factories and spaces above shops. The amount of vacant properties amount to about one million, nearly a third of the government’s target.
You can’t always know who the owner of the derelict building is, or why it has been abandoned to deteriorate. The local council has always been traditionally responsible for monitoring empty properties and promoting renovation. It is only recently that resourses and incentive has been channelled in this direction.
The same poor incentive used to exist for empty property owners. They would argue that they had to rely entirely on the private sector, utilizing the services of a vacant property security specialist. Its up to these companies to offer strategic advice including traveller eviction and squatter removal. Often these eviction services included the removal of hazardous material, whilst affecting a general site clearance.
Owners of derelict propety often see squatters as their main problem, although they can often have a beneficial effect. Their are advantages to the owner when a property is ’squatted’ by professional squatters as it can be rennovated and improved. When these buildings become secure, they are less likely to be hit by vandalism, saving the owners extra maintenance cost.
