Whistleblowing to the SIA
This guidance sets out how to make a protected disclosure to the Security Industry Authority, and what we will do with the disclosures we receive.
The Security Industry Authority (SIA) is the regulator of the UK’s private security industry. We were established under the Private Security Industry Act 2001 to contribute to public protection by setting and improving standards in the regulated private security industry. Read more about what we do.
The SIA is a ‘prescribed person’
We are a ‘prescribed person’ under the Public Interest Disclosure Act 1998. Being a ‘prescribed person’ means that, in some specific circumstances, you are legally protected if you tell us about suspected illegality or other wrongdoing. For example, you can take your case to an employment tribunal if you tell us something and you are then bullied or fired from your job for doing so. Read more about how this works on the Acas website.
This legal protection only applies if you are a whistleblower.
What we mean by ‘whistleblower’
You are a whistleblower if you are a worker and you report certain types of wrongdoing. This will usually be something you have seen at work – though not always. Your report must be:
- in the public interest – that is, the wrongdoing affects others (for example, the public)
- made in good faith (meaning it must be made honestly)
Whistleblowing is different from a personal complaint or grievance – for example, about how much your employer pays you or how long your shifts are. Read more about whistleblowing.
In legal terms, whistleblowing is referred to as making a ‘protected disclosure’.
Making a protected disclosure to the SIA
You can make a protected disclosure to the SIA. To be protected, you must reasonably believe that what you are telling us about:
- falls within our remit (we explain our remit below)
- is true – you must have some evidence or something else to give weight to what you disclose
You can disclose information directly to us through our online form. Tick the box marking that you are a whistleblower, so that we know to apply this policy and our whistleblowing procedure.
If you are an SIA licence holder, please do not use your SIA account to disclose information to us.
Things that fall within our remit
The SIA’s remit as a prescribed person is set out in the Prescribed Persons Order 2014.
“Matters relating to the functions of the SIA regarding the conduct of an individual or business, relating to –
- offences under the Private Security Industry Act 2001;
- whether an individual or business is fit and proper for the purpose of holding a licence or approval from the Security Industry Authority; and
- conduct which may undermine the regulation of security operatives and approved providers of security industry services under the Private Security Industry Act 2001.”
Our remit therefore relates specifically to those people and businesses whose activities fall within the scope of our Act.
Some examples of the kind of things we can deal with are:
- a private security company supplying unlicensed security guards or falsely claiming to be an SIA approved contractor
- a door supervisor groping customers at the nightclub where they work
- a security guard stealing goods from the site they are guarding
- a private security company employing people at below the National Minimum Wage
- a training company giving students the answers to assessments for SIA licence-linked qualifications in exchange for cash
Reporting openly, confidentially, or anonymously
When you make a protected disclosure to the SIA, you must make a choice about whether to do so openly, confidentially, or anonymously.
Disclosures made openly
You make a disclosure openly if you tell your employer that you are the person who reported things to us.
This may put you in a difficult position, but it makes it easier to show an employment tribunal that any ill-treatment you then receive is because of the disclosure.
Disclosures made confidentially
You make a disclosure confidentially if you tell us who you are, but you do not tell your employer that you reported things to us.
If we know who you are, we can:
- contact you to ask follow-up questions or, where possible, give you updates on what we have done
- get a better understanding of your relationship to what it is you are raising, which may help our investigations
- know how to approach things to protect your identity
We may have to disclose some information to your employer during our investigations. For example, we might have to say what is alleged to have happened. We will not reveal the source of the information we receive unless required to do so by law (for example, we might have to disclose your identity during a criminal prosecution). However, it is possible that your employer could work out or guess who the whistleblower is.
If they do, and they victimise you because of it, it may be hard for you to prove at an employment tribunal. They could argue that they did not know you were the whistleblower, and so could not have acted against you because of it.
Disclosures made anonymously
You make a disclosure anonymously if you do not tell us your identity.
We welcome anonymous disclosures from those who feel that an open or confidential disclosure is not possible. However, making your disclosure anonymously will mean that we cannot:
- contact you to ask follow-up questions, which may make it harder for us to act on what you have told us
- update you on what we have done
- know how to approach things to protect your identity
We may have to disclose some information to your employer during our investigations. For example, we might have to say what is alleged to have happened. It is possible that your employer could work out or guess who the whistleblower is.
If they do, and they victimise you because of it, it may be hard for you to prove at an employment tribunal. They could argue that they did not know you were the whistleblower, and so could not have acted against you because of it.
What we will do
We assess every report we receive. We prioritise reports which indicate the greatest risk to public safety or are likely to have the greatest impact on public trust and confidence in the private security industry.
If you have told us who you are, we may contact you to ask follow-up questions. We may also need to gather information from other sources before we can investigate or take other action.
We have a range of actions we may take because of what you tell us. Some examples are:
- referring the matter to the police or another law enforcement body
- reviewing how suitable someone is to hold an SIA licence, which may result in us suspending or revoking their licence
- reviewing whether a business should be approved under our Approved Contractor Scheme, which may result in us applying sanctions to the company or withdrawing its approval
- engaging with a security business to test compliance, investigate reports, or provide guidance
- inspecting premises or events, sometimes with one of our partners such as Home Office Immigration Enforcement
- using our legal powers of entry and inspection to gather evidence
- prosecuting the people or companies involved
Learn more about how we enforce SIA regulation.
Telling you what we have done
If we know who you are, and where we can, we will tell you:
- what we have done because of your disclosure
- our reasons for what we have done
- what we will do next
This might be quite some time after you raised your concerns with us.
If we contact you, we will tell you as much as we can, but for legal reasons there will be times when we cannot say much.
We will publish reports about what we have done
We will publish an annual report on:
- the protected disclosures we have received
- what we have done because of the information we were given
This is so people can see we take whistleblowing seriously and act on what we are told. We will not publish any information that identifies the whistleblowers involved.
The report will be included in our annual report and accounts.
If you want to complain
If you believe that we have not acted appropriately in relation to concerns you have raised with us, then you can make a complaint using our standard complaints procedure. Read about our complaints procedure.
If you are victimised because of whistleblowing
It is a sad fact that whistleblowers are sometimes victimised. This victimisation can take many forms, including dismissal, bullying, and denial of work.
The Public Interest Disclosure Act discourages victimisation of whistleblowers. It does this by making it possible for whistleblowers to take employment tribunal claims against their employers and so get compensation for any ill treatment. Despite this, victimisation can still happen.
It is possible that you could become a victim of bullying, or be dismissed, because you told us something. We are sorry, but if this happens then we cannot act on your behalf. An employment tribunal would need to establish if you have suffered a detriment under the Public Interest Disclosure Act.
It would be up to you to take the matter to an employment tribunal. You may want to seek independent advice on your options.