The SIA training courses vary by security field discipline. The initial training starts with the basics for keeping you and those you work with and for safe. As you move through the levels you will find that the SIA training courses offer a more challenging curriculum that many find fun to learn. For instance, close protecting training courses offer surveillance and reconnaissance in the coursework.
For each discipline you will be required to attend the entire course, unless you are exempt from part of it, and then pass the course in order to become licensed. The units are broken down to cover various aspects of the security industry concerns like safety and assessing the potential for risks within a crowd or in your line of duty. They also have an initial focus on professionalism. Regardless of which discipline you are going for, the industry is interested in churning out professional licensed individuals in order to raise the bar for the entire industry.
The required SIA training courses are aimed at increasing the realization of the professionalism and the skills required in order to perform the job well and safely. Whether you are a bouncer or you offer personal protection to a public figure, there are always risks involved. The SIA training courses are designed to help you understand what the risks are thanks to the cumulative experience of those who have worked before you. This way, you will know what to do under circumstances that have the potential to get out of hand or threaten to impede the success of your shift.
You can attend local classes in order to secure your required SIA training courses and you can attend training courses that relate to a different security discipline if you are interested in moving to another position. Most of the SIA training courses are plentiful just about any time so scheduling your class time shouldn’t be a problem.
Some employers recommend taking the time to finish out your SIA training courses and receive your license before applying for any position, as this way you can be put to work straight away. This is especially true for those with little to no experience.
Each SIA training course has a different period of duration. Some last 35 to 40 hours while others are over within just a few hours. This is in part determined by level of licensing and discipline of choice.
Under the Licensing Act of 2001, the SIA has the option and the power to mandate the same requirements for other closely related positions like private investigation, precognition agents, or security consultants. While the licensing requirements and training courses have not yet been put into place, those who work in such fields should keep an ear to the ground for when the licensing requirements are enforced. Some individuals in these fields have opted to take some of the SIA training courses and apply for licensing so they have a bridge license for when the mandate goes into effect.
Either way, the value of the SIA training courses is already showing up all over the UK. The incident rate, injury rate, and disruption rate for these disciplines has declined since the Licensing Act of 2001 has been successfully implemented.