Raising money for Francis House
David Hudsmith (Marketing Director for Stand Security Solutions Worldwide) and partner Susan Brown have completed The Three Peaks Challenge and combined with a charity raffle held at New Mills Schools to Business Golf Challenge with prizes kindly donated by Jagaur Stratstone, they have managed to raise £430.00 for Francis House, a Childrens Hospice based in Didsbury taking care of terminally ill chilren from the North West.
Latest crime figures - not all good news
Whilst the latest crime figures for 2008/9 suggest violent crime had reduced and the overall number of crimes reported remained stabled compared to 2007/8, there is an alarming rise in the number of burglaries up 1%, bag snatches up 25% and shoplifting up 10%.
Personal safety and safety awarness should be in the forefront of people’s minds, shop keepers should be vigilant and home owners taking home security seriously, don’t make yourself or your business an easy target.
Downsize your oversize!
From recent press articles, it would appear that the latest fashion for oversize handbags is the latest target for street robberies, these bags full of personal information is a real prize for the criminal element. What can you do to protect yourself?
Downsize your bag and the amount of information you carry, what do you really need to carry about your person?
If you really need that oversize bag, carry the bag in front of you and if you are with someone, then make sure the bag is between you.
Burglaries on the increase, another impact of the recession
The Home Office minister Jacqui Smith is to hold a “burglary summit” to deal with the increase in burglaries, seen as another result of the economic downturn.
Home Office figures released show that there were 69,000 burglaries between July and September 2008, a 4% rise over the same period in 2007. The BBC home affairs correspondant Daniel Sandford stated that “over the last 30 years, burglary rates appeared to have peaked at times of economic hardship, like the mid-1980s and the early 1990″.
This increase in buglaries is alarming given that the initial figures reported were at the very start of this downturn, it will be interesting to see the figures for October to December 2008 which are due to be announced.
What can you do to avoid becoming a victim of burglary? A few tips:
- Install a monitored alarm system
- Upgrade window and door locks (and use them!)
- Avoid leaving keys within eyesight or reach of the door/window
- Leave lights on timers to operate when you are away from home
- Inform neighbours if you are away from home
- Watch for unknown individuals hanging around as you approach or leave your home
- Report any suspicious activities
Stand Security Solutions Worldwide will conduct an audit of your security arrangements covering all aspects of your home and lifestyle. For more information contact us on 0845 130 4699.
Health & Safety crackdown
A new health and safety law due to come into force on January 16th 2009 will give courts greater power to punish directors of companies which breach the rules. The Health and Safety Offences Act, which will be introduced on friday 16th will make imprisonment an option for many offences. It would effectively mean that Directors could be treated as criminals by the courts. The Act raises the maximum penalties which lower courts can impose from £5,000 to £20,000. It also increases the range of offences for which an individual may be imprisoned and makes certain offences, which are currently only triable in the lower courts, triable in both lower and higher courts. What was once considered a breach of regulations could in future become a criminal matter.
The message is that Directors and senior managers can no longer afford to be lax about health and safety. They need to take a systematic approach, ensure risk assessments are carried out and proper procedures and training are in place to minimise risks and help protect their staff and the public at large.
Security Alert As Fraudsters Target Taxpayers
Thursday January 8 2009
Small business owners and the self-employed are being sent fake email messages stating they are owed a tax rebate and asking for bank or credit card details so the money can be refunded. Alternatively, they are asked to call a phone line to leave their details. The line appears to keep ringing even though callers are being charged up to £6 a minute. Revenue and Customs chief executive Lesley Strathie said: ‘This is the most sophisticated and prolific phishing scam that we have encountered. The messages are being sent out as the January 31 deadline nears for self-assessment forms and when many taxpayers will be due a rebate. HMRC said that concerned taxpayers were forwarding 500 of these e-mails to the authorities a day. The messages include the HMRC logo and are sent from such addresses as refundtax@hmrc.gov.co.uk and taxrefund@hmrc.gov.uk
Ms Strathie said: ‘We only ever contact customers who are due a refund in writing by post. We never use e-mails, telephone calls or external companies in these circumstances.
A spokesman for computer security company Sophos said: ‘It’s a trick that works. People are all too willing to enter their details on to websites without thinking twice.’ He advised the public to type in the web address of a site they wanted to visit rather than clicking on links in unsolicited e-mails. ‘Its the most prolific scam we’ve seen’.
Violence in schools
The police were called to violent incidents in schools in England more than 7,000 times last year, according to figures from the Conservatives.
Police forces were asked how often they were called to “school premises for an attempted or actual violent crime”.
The survey was based on responses from 25 of the 39 police forces in England.
Head teachers’ leader John Dunford said the survey was “scaremongering” and added that schools were often havens of safety in troubled communities.
‘Worrying’
But Shadow Children’s Secretary Michael Gove said the figures on police calls showed that schools did not have enough power to “nip discipline problems in the bud”.
“The number of violent incidents in schools that lead to police being called is very worrying,” said Mr Gove.
Michael Gove ‘The violence and behaviour problem is running out of control’
The figures published by the Conservatives were obtained under Freedom of Information requests - with an overall total of 7,311.
There are wide variations between different parts of the country. Police in Warwickshire recorded 73 call outs over violent incidents in school, Merseyside 141, Kent 425 and the Metropolitan Police area 2,698.
How the figures were gathered varies between forces. For example, the figure for the Metropolitian Police applies to “educational establishments” rather than only schools, and the figure for Kent includes incidents in the “vicinity of schools”.
Thames Valley had the second highest figure with 697 call outs, but said that differences in how the figures were compiled meant that comparisons were not valid.
“There are 175 state secondary schools in Thames Valley, attended by 161,000 pupils. The statistics represent an average of four violent crimes per school per year,” said a spokesman.
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SCHOOL CRIME DATA
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What the figures do not show is whether this is a small number of schools repeatedly calling the police to tackle incidents or a more widespread changing pattern in which the police are being called occasionally to large numbers of schools.
Nor is there any breakdown of whether the incidents involved pupils or parents, or ex-pupils returning to cause trouble.
But this provides a snapshot suggesting that police are being called to schools hundreds of times each week and that they are carrying out interventions that were once the responsibility of teachers.
Dr Dunford, general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders, said schools were more likely to call the police than in the past.
He said this reflected a closer working relationship between schools and the police which means that schools are more likely to use police assistance.
“Parents and pupils should not be scared by these stories - they should be reassured that, when violence does occur in school, it is dealt with quickly and firmly,” said Dr Dunford.
He added: “Many of these incidents involve young people who are not pupils at the school trespassing on school premises and causing trouble. School sites are often very open places.”
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 We want schools to work closely with the police as part of the Safer School Partnerships and to take a hard line when dealing with poor behavioure  DCSF spokesman
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And Chris Keates, head of the Nasuwt teachers’ union, said the figures could be a sign that teachers were more willing to report such violent incidents to the police.
But she urged caution with the statistics, as they do not show differences in how local police forces respond to such school incidents or whether the figures relate to pupil misbehaviour or to other problems such as intruders.
She also rejected the Conservatives’ conclusion that schools lack sufficient powers to tackle misbehaviour.
“In recent years schools have had increasing powers devolved to them to tackle pupil indiscipline. The real issue of concern is that still too many fail to use them.”
Martin Johnson of the ATL teachers’ union said the figures on police being called to schools reflected the worries of classroom violence.
“In February, 29% of teachers told us they have faced physical aggression from a pupil, and over 90% said pupils have been excluded from their school for behavioural problems.”
Mr Johnson also said that more than two-thirds of teachers said “pupil behaviour was worse than two years ago”.
As well as the police being called by schools for assistance, there are 450 schools in England which have dedicated police officers, either based in the school or shared between a group of schools.
A spokeswoman for the Association of Chief Police Officers said the “police service works closely with schools in the prevention of crime and anti-social behaviour”.
The Department for Children, Schools and Families also asserted the value of schools and police working together.
“We want schools to work closely with the police as part of the Safer School Partnerships and to take a hard line when dealing with poor behaviour,” said a spokeswoman.
BBC News Page last updated at 10:15 GMT, Tuesday, 23 December 2008
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Top ten security guidelines for businesses
The following is a summary of our ten protective security tips for businesses:
- Asses the risks to your business
- Consider security first when planning building works
- Establish a secure culture throughout your business
- Keep premises clear and tidy adopting a clear desk policy
- Control access points and use staff and visitor passes
- Install physical measures e.g. locks, alarms, CCTV security lighting etc
- Establish good mail handling procedures
- Recruit carefully, checking identities and references
- Take all possible IT security precautions including password protecting all desk and mobile PC’s
- Test your business continuity plans regularly
Stand Solutions Worldwide Limited offer a complete range of corporate security services, working on a stand-alone basis or in conjunction with the client company we can provide consultation and support regarding many corporate security issues.
As a company we have gained a valuable insight into the corporate world through years of hands-on experience and reputation is the cornerstone of our business. Please do not hesitate to contact us for a free, no-obligation assessment of your current security services or to discuss your corporate security needs.
Businessman Maurice Nixon tortured by armed raiders..
A wealthy property developer who runs parts of Portobello and Old Spitalfields markets in London was tied up for 12 hours by a gang who pierced holes in his legs.
Maurice Nixon, 53, was attacked by burglars wearing ski masks as he returned to his country home in Worcestershire. The businessman was forced inside his home at gunpoint and then had his hands, feet and body bound with plastic cable ties before he was tied to a bannister.
One member of the gang pushed a screwdriver into his legs repeatedly, leaving six wounds up to six inches deep. He also had his upper teeth knocked out with a crowbar.
The gang left his house in Mustow Green, near Harvington, early on Sunday evening with an unknown amount of cash and jewellery.
Mr Nixon, who lives alone, was found 15 hours later by a business associate who had arrived for a meeting. He was taken to the Worcestershire Royal Hospital, where he was being treated last night for the leg wounds, facial injuries and circulatory problems.
Kim Nixon, 48, his sister, said: “That is torture; it is despicable. Doctors are worried about his kidneys and the toxins from the holes in his legs.
“We are all extremely upset and very shocked that this could happen and the whole family is devastated. He is a very generous and well-liked member of the community.
“It was a very violent and serious attack. We are absolutely devastated. To be tied up for that long, you think you are going to die.
“He is a very well-known man in the community and very generous. We are very lucky he is alive. The paramedics were amazed he had not had a heart attack.”
The businessman is believed to run a number of markets around the country and is the director of 151 companies, most of which are dormant.
He has also held 142 directorships of companies that are now dissolved and directorships of two companies now in liquidation. He has resigned 27 other directorships.
One of his companies, Urbanism, has run parts of Old Spitalfields and Portobello markets for the past ten years. A spokesman for Westway Development Trust, which owns the Portobello market site in West London, said: “Maurice is very well liked by all the stallholders. They will be very upset by this news. His company, Urbanism, is responsible for the day to day running of the market. He rents the stall pitches and closely vets what’s being sold there.”
Detective Sergeant Duncan Lloyd, of Kidderminster CID, said: “This was a very unusual incident and we are still trying to establish exactly what happened. The victim is understandably very distressed and is still being treated in hospital for his injuries.”
Mr Nixon’s family is offering a substantial reward for information that leads to the arrest and conviction of the robbers.
From The Times, 13/11/2008
Businessman Maurice Nixon tortured by armed raiders during 12-hour ordeal in his own home…
Whether you are a high net worth individual, VIP, sporting star or feel threatened, we offer a close protection solution to meet your requirements: from working unseen in the background to a fully-managed mobile and residential team covering national or international environments.
For further information on Stand Security Solutions complete range of services please visit our website.
Stand Security Solutions Worldwide will conduct a full security risk assesment, please call us on 0845 130 4699 today for a free, no-obligation consultation
