The Regency Security Group 2016 Year in Review
Gary Powers – Managing Director & Conor Powers – Executive Director
As we look back on 2016 and welcome in 2017 we get the chance to really appreciate what a big year this has been for the group. With another new acquisition, property purchases, new clients and new divisions of the company opening, the group is going from strength to strength in a market which is becoming more demanding and competitive all the time.
As always for us after an incredibly busy Christmas and New Year, the year started with our annual ACS audit. Happily for us we scored a very high 158 putting us in the top 1% of ACS companies in the UK. The SIA Approved Contractor Scheme gives our organisation the opportunity to distinguish itself as one of the best providers of private security services in the UK and to achieve such a high score is tantamount to the hard work put in by all the group.
2016 also saw The Regency Security Group and Regency Guarding & Events become members of the BSIA and SafeContractor Scheme.
The British Security Industry Association (BSIA) is the trade association for the professional security industry in the UK. The members are responsible for more than 70% of privately owned security companies including the provision of security guarding and door supervision along with the manufacture, distribution and installation of electronic and physical security equipment. In July, Gary Powers was elected chairman of the Leisure Industry Section. Through his Chairmanship Gary is hoping he will be able to be the voice of the Leisure Industry that is sometimes missing when important decisions are made about the industry. Through his connections within the Door Supervision industry he hopes to be able to grow the Leisure Industry Section and encourage others to join the BSIA.
Alcumus SafeContractor is a leading third party accreditation scheme which recognises extremely rigorous standards in health and safety management amongst contractors. It is used by thousands of organisations in the UK including SMEs and FTSE 100 companies. The companys application for SafeContractor accreditation was driven by the need for a uniform standard across the business.
As the businesses have been expanding organically at a rapid rate the need for extra space was becoming increasingly apparent. The opportunity arose for us to purchase a property directly opposite head office which has provided a much needed facility for Regency Guarding & Events. 2016 was a fantastic year for this division with some big new clients coming on board. They have been providing security for big name music concerts such as Rod Stewart and Lionel Ritchie, premiership football stadiums, the NHS, various universities along with many more new clients. The new facility has also given us space for a custom built remote CCTV suite as well as a new training centre for Regency Training. Regency Training is an acredited training company offering courses and qualifications in all types of security fields.
Along with the new purchase in Essex we also bought new offices in Norwich. Norwich has always been an important area for Regency. Covering over 90% of the doors, events at Norwich City Football Club as well as Boxing and MMA Events it became necessary to have a permanent office base. The 3 story purpose built building has provided a much needed base for the local Operations and Commercial Managers.
To end the year off Regency completed yet another new business acquisition, Abal Security. This was the group’s 3rd acquisiton in 18 months. Abal Security Services Ltd was a highly regarded private security company in the South of England. Established in 1995, Abal quickly became known as one of the most dynamic companies in the market. Abal dealt in similar fields to the Regency Security Group, Door Supervision, Guarding, Event Security, Key Holding, Mobile Patrols and Close Protection, so it was a natural fit when the acquisition was first brought to the table. Regency Security has always stayed true to our ethos of being a standards-driven company. With each industry accreditation, we have always been at the very forefront of compliance, so when looking at potential businesses acquisitions, it is important that we only worked with companies with a similar business practise. Abal held the ISO:9001 standard as well as being one of the first companies in the UK to become an ACS company and compliance has always been an integral part of their business. The acquisition completed at the beginning of the December which was always going to be a tough time of year for the adjustment but the Operational and Office staff did a fantastic job at integrating Abal into Regency.
2016 wasnt just a success business wise, it was also a year for giving back. Through our partnership with Help for Heroes we organised a charity football tournament at Norwich City Football Club and raised a lot of money in aid of the charity. 6 teams were entered, 4 from Regency, 1 from Norfolk Licensing and 1 from the British Army Medical Core. In 2017 we are organising a repeat of the event, however on a larger scale with more teams and more money to be raised. Along with our own Football tournament we also sponsored Jamies Game which is a celebrity football match in aid of the Community Sports Foundation. Norwich City Community Sports Foundation (CSF) helps over 38,000 people every year achieve their goals through sport, supporting some of the most disadvantaged, disabled and talented people across Norfolk.
Gary Powers, Managing Director said, 2016 has been an incredible year for us with many successes under our belt. Its also been a tough year as the industry has seen the lowest number of Door Supervisor license applications received by the SIA in many years, making recruitment very hard. We have implemented various strategies to help with recruitment and fortunately I have a great operational team who are out there ensuring our venues are fully manned. The Abal acquisition was a natural move for us and has strengthened our foothold in London and the Home Counties. I have big plans for this year for the group. Regency Guarding & Events will be pushing into new markets and our CCTV Remote Monitoring Suite will be put into full action supporting all areas of the business. We will be diversifying into new client markets and pushing further into the North East within the late night economy and opening a new office in Scotland. As always I would like to extend my thanks to my loyal clients and hardworking staff and wish everyone a fantastic 2017′.
For regular company updates please visit ‘Latest News’ at www.regencysecurity.co.uk
