This year has seen big leaps forward with qualification, with our first pilots following extensive and varied consultation on the syllabus. So, thank you to those who volunteered their time to attend these in Liverpool and London. We would like to thank the Metropolitan Police’s Managed Service Training Provider who have helped bring us to this point and whose educational services bolstered our specialist knowledge. Moving forward, we will be finding a new partner, an Awarding Body, to work with us to develop the only NaCTSO-endorsed qualification in Counter Terrorism Protective Security and Preparedness. We are currently engaged in the commercial process to find a suitable Awarding Body, with the Statement of Requirements expected to be published in January. Once an Awarding Body is selected, we will work with them on the next phases of the NaCTSO qualification’s development and to towards achieving Ofqual-certification. We expect to make the announcement of whom we will be working with in Spring 2025 and are excited to be making these next steps in the development of the Competent Person in the Workplace Level 3 Certificate.
Alongside the progression of our qualification, we are working towards identifying a suitable partner to host our Counter-Terrorism Security Specialists Register and expect to make an announcement at the same time as the Awarding Body in Spring 2025. The Competent Persons Scheme Team have been working hard to ensure that whomever hosts the register are provided with clear and deliverable objectives that reflect the needs of the business market.
2024 also saw the introduction of the Terrorism (Protection of Premises) Bill, also known as Martyn’s Law, in Parliament. We will continue to monitor its progression and will be sure to include its requirements in the qualification’s syllabus. The Competent Persons Scheme’s would like to reassure businesses and the public that our qualification and register are not restricted to any specific size or type of location, and as such are open to all those who take their risk from terrorism seriously and want to keep their site users safe, no matter its purpose or location. We also take this opportunity to reiterate that as the legislation has not been finalised and no statutory guidance issued, any companies offering services or training to prepare for the incoming law cannot be verified nor relied upon to be suitable or sufficient to meet any legal obligations that could be introduced. Until it is passed into law, please continue to check and use the advice published on ProtectUK. ProtectUK is also the Competent Persons Scheme’s single point of authoritative publication for our announcements. With that in mind, we wish you all a wonderful and safe festive season, and look forward to publishing our next updates in 2025.
