Question 1

What Is Night Security?

Accepted Answer

Night security guards are licenced SIA (Security Industry Authority) personnel who look after an area, property or site during the night.

As self-explanatory as its name seem, there’s actually much more to night security than you might originally anticipate. While they’ll expectedly be working overnight or in the early hours of the morning, it’s crucial to understand why they’re a necessary part of any effective security package.

They’ll most often be utilised at sites or areas that are either unoccupied for an extended period of time (such as warehouses or distribution centres), or that are at particularly high-risk or vulnerable to threats such as thieves or trespassers.

While we’ll discuss the roles and responsibilities of a night security guard in more detail in our next section, they’re most often expected to safeguard property or premises over one or multiple night shifts.

Not only do they maintain a physical presence on your site, but they can also act as a powerful deterrent to any potential criminals before crime can ever occur, as well as ensure that your site is perceived as safe by any potential investors or customers.

Question 2

What Do Security Guards Do At Night?

Accepted Answer

As we’ve already briefly touched upon, night security is often used to watch over buildings or premises when they’re left unoccupied or vulnerable overnight. That’s not their only role, however – we’ll break down just a few of their more pivotal responsibilities.

1. Ensure Your Site Is Secure Throughout The Night

The reason that many people opt for night security guards in the first place, the primary duty of night security is the maintain the security and integrity of your premises or property over the course of the night and into the morning.

As part of their role, your night-time security guards are able to:

Lock and double check windows, doors and access points – An absolutely integral part of securing your property, your night security guards can ensure that all points of access are fully locked up.
Activate any necessary alarms – If you’ve got an alarm system in place, your night security guards can activate these once your staff have left site, and business has stopped for the day.
Set up security barriers – This is especially important on places like retail or business parks, and can involve automated or manual activation using keypads or ID card scanning.
Occupy a guardhouse or specific area of your site – Often going hand-in-hand with barrier activation and monitoring, your night security guards can watch over your site from a welfare facility or guardhouse.

These are just the core duties you can expect from your night-time security guards, and form the fundamentals of securing your premises.

2. Admit Any Authorised Visitors

It’s a fact that, for many businesses, the evening and night mean a pause to the regular business they do. For others, especially facilities that deal in logistics and distribution, night-time can mean a busy period, with deliveries and shipments needing to be fulfilled.

It’s understandable that you’d therefore expect your night security to be able to admit and monitor any pre-authorised visitors or deliveries that need to be processed while your facility is being guarded.

Good night security guards will be able to keep a detailed log of any and all visitors to your site throughout the evening, and intimately understand the demands and needs of your specific premises.

With well-established companies like Churchill Support Services, we’re able to offer your site expertly trained security personnel who have prior experience in securing a warehouse or facility that sees night traffic.

3. Thoroughly Investigate Any & All Disturbances

While it’s not necessarily something you’d want to think about, it’s an unfortunate truth that, in spite of your night security guards’ best efforts, your site could still see some form of disturbance. These will almost always be minor, but that won’t change the efficacy and swiftness with which your security personnel respond.

By employing night security, you’re protecting your property against any of the disturbances you might see, even in a quiet or relatively unassuming area.

Plus, alongside that peace of mind you get from knowing your site is in the best possible hands, you can breathe easy knowing that anything that could disrupt your operations will be dealt with appropriately.

4. Respond Rapidly To Any Alarms

While it’s uncomfortable to think about the worst case scenario of your premises’ alarm being activated, it’s comforting to know that your night security guards are able to deliver the appropriate response whenever an alarm is raised during the night.

Having dedicated night-time security personnel on your premises means they’ll be able to look into what caused the alarm, and deal appropriately with the situation. Once that’s done, they’ll also be able to deactivate any alarms or alerts that have been triggered.

This also means that you won’t need to rely on your own staff, too. Our superb guards will take all the onus away from your colleagues, and ensure that they’re never expected to put themselves in harm’s way, or respond to a situation involving an alarm activation.

Of course, while the situation will have been dealt with, what comes next is equally crucial. The best night security guards will keep a detailed log of any and all incidents involving your site’s alarm system, and feed that information back to you in a comprehensive report.

5. Work Alongside The Emergency Services When Needed

Should the worst happen, and the emergency services need to be called in, it’s natural you’d be uncertain of how to proceed. That’s where well-drilled night security personnel can really help alleviate the stresses that come along with that situation.

Specially trained to liaise with the emergency services, and provide them with detailed information on any necessary goings on, your night security guards can remove all the headaches associated with that.

They’ll also be able to pass over any necessary evidence, such as CCTV footage or alarm reports, and ensure that any trespassers or thieves are brought to justice.

6. Perform Night Patrols If Required

If you’ve got a more expansive site that needs securing overnight, employing night security that have mobile capabilities can help to ensure the safety and security of larger premises, or ones with multiple points of access.

These specially trained officers will be able to perform routine patrols across the extent of your property, ensuring that all areas are fully secure throughout the evening. They’ll also be able to move between different surveillance points, which is essential if you’re securing a more complex site, like a building or construction premises.

Mobile patrols also offer a more all-encompassing security presence, ensuring you’re covering every possible point of access, and protecting the business as effectively as possible.

7. Open Back Up For Your Arrival

Of course, night security aren’t just there to ensure the comprehensive safety when the business is unoccupied or closed. They’re also there to ensure that the site is ready to open back up when your staff members return in the morning.

That includes duties such as:

Unlocking any necessary doors or access points
Deactivating night-time alarm systems
Lifting barriers to car parks or entries

Ultimately, night security guards are there to provide a comprehensive service that both keeps your premises secure, but also accessible and welcoming to those who are authorised to be there.

Question 3

Where And When Are Night Security Guards Needed?

Accepted Answer

Of course, while it’s advantageous to have night security regardless of the business you operate or the sector you work in, it’s undeniable that there are industries that are in more dire need of night-time security than others.

We’d strongly advise this peace of mind for:

Retail parks – With a range of shops and businesses operating on site, securing a retail premises overnight is absolutely essential. Guards can be in control of barriers, as well as locking and unlocking services.
Warehouses and distribution facilities – Often operating throughout the night and on a tight schedule, these sites often require robust night security to ensure the safe and smooth running of their business.
Construction sites – Building site materials and machinery are often expensive, and paint a clear target for thieves. With night security, you’re able to safeguard your equipment and site when your project is unoccupied or closed overnight.
Hospitals and medical facilities – As places that are naturally always busy, hospitals are prime candidates for effective night security guarding. Whether that’s to safeguard patients, or prevent the theft of medication or equipment, it’s an essential part of healthcare security.

Of course, these are just the sectors where night-time security is most in-demand, but the truth is that almost all businesses would benefit significantly from some form of overnight security.

Plus, with the bespoke approach that Churchill Support Services provide, you’ll be fully covered across every aspect of your business, and only receive the right security you and your premises needs.

What Is Night Security?