The High Street  – the terrorism risk and management planning

As high streets, bars and restaurants become busy again, the UK Counter Terrorism and Metropolitan Police have warned of the increased likelihood of a terrorist attack.

Individuals and businesses alike, are being urged to remain vigilant during the Christmas period, as places become more and more crowded and the two recent attacks that prompted the UK’s terrorism threat level to be raised to SEVERE, may spur more terrorist activity.

At the forefront of retail and hospitality businesses plans, must be keeping everyone safe.

There are a number of simple and cost-effective ways your business can improve its resilience to a terrorist attack – helping keep customers and staff safe.

Encourage your staff to be on the lookout for and report suspicious activity

“Your people are your biggest advantage in preventing and tackling a range of threats, including criminal activity, unlawful protest and terrorism.”, says the Centre for the Protection of National Infrastructure (CPNI).   As a result, they have developed a training programme called See, Check and Notify (SCaN) designed to empower staff to correctly identify suspicious activity and know what to do when they encounter it. The tailored short courses cover suspicious activity, vigilance and reporting.

The importance of First Aid training

First aid is vital to bridge the gap until emergency services arrive. This can be provided by St Johns Ambulance or a specialist medical provider.  Consider holding an Advanced Trauma Pack in your office or building which can be used by the emergency services in the event of a mass casualty event.

Ensure you have completed your ‘immediate action’ plan

The immediate action plan is a quick checklist of questions every member of staff should be able to answer in order to drastically improve reaction times in the event of an emergency. Address the following questions:

1. Who is appointed to make decisions on the shop floor, and do they know what they’re doing?
2. How do you enter and exit the building in emergency?
3. How do you lock down quickly?
4. Where can you shelter?
5. How do you communicate and how do you stay updated if you find yourself in a ‘Run, Hide, Tell’ scenario?
6. Have you briefed your staff?

Take advantage of Valkyrie’s advice and guidance

Valkyrie have a broad range of advice, guidance and skills to manage risks. We draw our expertise from counter terrorism policing, military and intelligence services; with over 100 years of experience.  For any guidance and further advice, please contact us E: security@valkyrie.co.uk | T: +44 (0) 20 7499 9323