The Security Industry Authority opened a public consultation on 28 August 2026 on proposed changes to licence-linked qualifications. It closes at 11:59pm on 23 October 2026, a Friday. Final specifications are due in winter 2026, with new qualifications launching later in 2027.
Two of the proposals matter more than the rest for close protection operators, and both are worth reading as questions rather than decisions. The consultation is seeking views, not announcing an outcome.
The first asks, in the regulator's own words, "if we should introduce a new licence condition that requires close protection operatives, door supervisors and security guards to always hold a valid first aid certificate". A licence condition is a different thing from a training module. It would mean holding current certification for as long as you hold the licence, not simply having passed something once.
The second asks "if we should still allow close protection licence holders to perform other licensable activities through licence integration". That is the arrangement under which a close protection licence also covers door supervision and security guarding work. For operators who fill gaps between close protection assignments with door or guarding shifts, a change here would reach earnings directly, so it is the question to read first.
The wider package covers updated content and technical specifications, changes to how learners demonstrate the required level of English, more real-life scenarios in the conflict management specification for security guarding operatives, a post-licence standard in advanced physical intervention for higher-risk deployments, refreshed counter-terrorism awareness content brought into a single learning package, and updates spanning incident recording, crime scene preservation, drug response, spiking awareness, wheelchair searching, social media and auditing, and emerging technologies.
The regulator reviews these qualifications every five years. It says this round was run differently, with earlier and wider engagement on what people wanted changed, and looking at the prerequisites for doing the job rather than only the course content.
Responses are invited from front-line licence holders, employers, buyers of security, training providers, trainers, prospective operatives and the public. If any of the above would change how you work, the window to say so is open until 23 October and the decisions land after it closes.
