Venue security professionals and those charged with securing Publicly Accessible Locations (PALs) will have the opportunity to get on top of the incoming Protect Duty legislation and its repercussions in an exclusive seminar programme on Wednesday 18^th May at IFSEC International.

Taking place from 9AM in South Gallery Suite 18, three seminars from leading experts, including the current Head of NaCTSO (National Counter Terrorism Security Office), will give security specialists with an overview of the new Protect Duty and provide advice on how to work with police units across the country to better secure Publicly Accessible Locations (PALs).

The Protect Duty will be a new piece of anti-terrorism legislation designed to ensure the public is better protected from a “multifaceted, diverse and continually evolving” terror threat. It follows a campaign from Figen Murray, the mother of Martyn Hett who sadly lost his life in the Manchester Arena terrorist attack in May 2017, who has highlighted the need to improve security standards in crowded public spaces and venues.

The initial Protect Duty consultation opened to the public and industry in February 2021, and was targeted at all those who own or operate publicly accessible locations that a ‘Protect Duty’ would potentially affect, including:

• Venues
• Organisations
• Businesses
• Local authorities
• Public authorities
• Individuals

Crucially, the aim is to implement security measures, but without placing “undue burden” on smaller businesses, and to identify what support would be required from government. During the exclusive sessions at IFSEC International, experts will explore some of the key challenges involved for security managers, directors and consultants for whom the new legislation may affect. Large venue professionals are particularly encouraged to attend.

The seminar programme, which all takes place in South Gallery Suite 18 at London’s ExCeL during IFSEC, is as follows:

Home Office Perspective: Delivery of The Protect Duty – Shaun Hipgrave, Director of Protect and Prepare

Wednesday 18^th May, 09:15-10:15, South Gallery Suite 18

As the Director of Protect and Prepare at the Home Office, Shaun Hipgrave will provide an update on the current position with regards to the implementation of the Protect Duty on behalf of HM Government.

Public Accessible Locations (PALs) – Det Supt Adam Thomson

Wednesday 18^th May, 10:15-11:15, South Gallery Suite 18

Det Supt Adam Thomson is the current Head of NaCTSO. Adam will present on the area of securing Public Accessible Locations which will be a particularly challenging part of the Protect Duty, in terms of legislating for the variety of settings involved. Adam will fully explain how NaCTSO, CPNI and the Home Office are working together to introduce this new legislation.

The need for the Protect Duty and Martyn’s Law – Nick Aldworth & Figen Murray

Wednesday 18^th May, 11:15-12:15, South Gallery Suite 18

Nick is a former National Co- Ordinator for Protect and Prepare. Together with Figen Murray he has been working to ensure Protect Duty / Martyn’s Law is introduced in the UK to ensure Crowded Places are much safer environments. Martyn’s Law is in remembrance of Martyn Hett who was the son of Figen Murray and was a victim of the Manchester Arena attack on 22^nd May 2017.

In this session Nick and Figen will explain his work in influencing the introduction of the Protect Duty Legislation and why it is such an important new piece of legislation in dealing with the threat of terrorist attacks in crowded places such as arenas, festivals, hospitality venues, retail facilities and transport hubs.

Meet the speakers

Nick Aldworth, Founder & Director, Risk to Resolution

Nick Aldworth retired from a 36-year career in the military and policing in May 2019. Across that time he enjoyed multiple operational roles, with the last five years serving within counter-terrorism (CT) and retiring as the UK’s CT National Coordinator for Protect and Prepare, where his teams were responsible for helping make the UK stronger against terrorism and more resilient to its impacts.

He was London’s CT protective security and preparedness lead during the 2017 terrorist attacks, responsible for coordinating the police protective security response to those incidents, as well as supporting the private sector to make themselves stronger.

Prior to this, Nick was head of policing and security at Parliament, managing a mixed team of 500 security and police officers. From 2011 to 2012, Nick was the firearms planner and commander for the 2012 Olympic Venues in Central London. On retirement, Nick joined forces with Figen Murray, whose son was murdered in the Manchester Arena attack, and Brendan Cox, the husband of Jo Cox MP, in campaigning for the UK Protect Duty, and he was the author of the proposal on which the Government has recently consulted.

Nick set up his own company, Risk to Resolution Ltd (R2R), with a view to helping organisations identify the challenges they face and support them, and their staff, in resolving them.

Figen Murray, OBE

Figen Murray is the mother of Martyn Hett, who at 29 years old was killed in the terrorist attack at the Manchester Arena in May 2017. Figen is the force behind Martyn’s Law, a proposed legislation that requires publicly accessible locations to bring in security measures against the threat of terrorism. Martyn’s Law will hopefully form part of the Protect Duty.

Adam Thomson, Head of NaCTSO

Adam Thomson spent 20 years as an officer in the Royal Air Force Regiment. During this time he was deployed on operations in Europe, Africa, the Middle East, Southwest Asia and the Caribbean. On the majority of these deployments he was responsible for Protective Security and Preparedness for the coalition forces operating in that area. This culminated in a role as the Chief of Staff (Force Protection) at Kandahar Airfield – not only the busiest single runway airport in the world, but also a hub for 35,000 soldiers and contractors.

On retiring from the military, Adam joined North Yorkshire Police on the Direct Entrant (Superintendent) scheme. When he completed his probation he commanded York and Selby, the Force’s largest district. In 2017 he joined Counter Terrorism Policing as the Deputy National Coordinator Protect and Prepare, where he oversaw the expansion of the role of NaCTSO to cover Hostile State Actors and formally incorporate Prepare. This growth in the role brought an elevation in the rank of Head of NaCTSO and in 2019 Adam was appointed as the first Superintendent Head of NaCTSO.

Shaun Hipgrave, Director, Protect and Prepare

Shaun Hipgrave is Director at Protect and Prepare, two of the Ps from the UK Counter Terrorism Strategy CONTEST. He was the former Head of the Joint Security and Resilience Centre (JSARC) in the OSCT of the Home Office which he set up from scratch from 2016 and is the policy area for working with academia and the private sector, as well as the unit that runs the HO Security and Policing show every year. Shaun has been working in the security sector for over 25 years.

After serving in the British Army he joined Northumbria Police where he served for 13 years, mainly in investigation and intelligence roles. In 2003 he moved to the private sector joining FTS, a services and software forensic telecoms company focused in the criminal justice space. After a spell as head of international development he took over as FTS managing director. In 2012 he moved to IBM where he worked in the analytics solutions business. As well as his private sector career, Shaun has been heavily involved in supporting the security sector through trade bodies. Prior to joining the Civil Service, Shaun spent six years as the VP of the security sector board for ADS as well as a member of the RISC executive, an organisation that is now the main conduit between JSARC and the private sector/academia.