24/7 Alarm Response Services

Every response follows the procedure written into your assignment instructions. A typical attendance runs like this:

1. Notification: we are alerted by your alarm receiving centre, your own team or a remote monitoring service.
2. Attendance: an officer travels to site with your keys, under the response times agreed for your premises.
3. External check: before entering, the officer walks the perimeter, checking doors, windows, shutters, roof access and signs of forced entry.
4. Police involvement where required: if there are signs that a crime is in progress or has been committed, the officer contacts the police and does not enter until it is safe to do so.
5. Internal check: where it is safe, the officer enters, checks the zones that triggered, and looks for intruders, damage, fire, leaks or a fault.
6. Reset and re-secure: the alarm is reset where possible, and the building is locked and left secure.
7. Repairs: if a door, window or shutter cannot be secured, we coordinate emergency remedial repairs, such as boarding up or lock replacement, through approved contractors, within the authority levels you set in the assignment instructions.
8. Incident report: you receive an incident report after every activation.

In England, Wales and Northern Ireland, police response to security systems is governed by the National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC) policy, Police Operational Advice and Security Industry Requirements for Response to Security Systems. Police Scotland operates its own policy. Under the NPCC policy, remotely monitored systems that meet the required standards (Type A) can be issued a Unique Reference Number (URN) by the police, which allows the monitoring centre to request police attendance. Other systems, such as audible-only bells (Type B), do not get a police response from the alarm alone; police attend only where there is evidence that a crime is being committed, reported by someone at the scene.

The policy also sets requirements for keyholders: they must be contactable, trained to operate the alarm, have transport, have access to all relevant parts of the premises, and be able to attend within the required timescale. If keyholders fail to attend, or a system generates repeated false calls within a rolling 12-month period, police response can be withdrawn so that only keyholder response remains. Having a dependable keyholder, and acting on the causes of false alarms, protects your URN. Our keyholding service is designed to work with these arrangements.

Most activations are not break-ins. Common causes include doors left insecure, faulty detectors, poorly placed sensors, pests, and staff entering codes incorrectly. Each incident report records what triggered the alarm and what the officer found, so patterns become visible. We flag recurring faults to you, so your alarm maintainer can fix them before they cost you call-out charges or police response.

Sometimes premises cannot be left secure: a smashed shopfront, a forced shutter or a failed alarm panel. In those cases the officer can remain on site until repairs are made, or we can arrange temporary security guarding, extra patrol visits or emergency security cover until the building is protected again.

Officers attending alarm activations with your keys carry out activity licensable by the SIA under the Private Security Industry Act 2001, and hold the appropriate SIA licences. BS 7984-1 gives recommendations for keyholding and response services, and the NPCC policy expects customers using a commercial keyholding company to be aware of SIA licensing and BS 7984-1. Seccuro does not claim certification to BS 7984.

Check your alarm monitoring contract for keyholder requirements, make sure your URN details and keyholder list are current, and confirm that any provider can attend within the timescale your arrangements require. Police response policies are set out by the NPCC and by individual forces, and can change.

Officers are supported by 24-hour control room support. Alarm response can be combined with remote CCTV monitoring, and with mobile patrols that use marked, satellite-tracked vehicles and wearable digital patrol recording. See technology and reporting.