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Oliver Curran and Geoff Brown have been announced as new Chair and Vice Chair respectively of the Association of University Chief Security Officers (AUCSO).
The association provides a global forum for security professionals working in universities, colleges and institutions of tertiary education to exchange knowledge, information and best practice.
Pictured: Oliver Curran (left), Geoff Brown (right)
Current Vice Chair, Oliver Curran, will become the Chair of AUCSO replacing longstanding Chair, Les Allan, who is stepping down after serving as Chair for two years, prior to that vice chair for two years.
A member of the AUCSO Executive Committee for some five years, Curran has worked in the Security Industry for nearly three decades. Working initially in Contract Security in the corporate sector, the last 15 years has seen him in the role of In-House Security Manager in the higher education sector at UCL (University College London).
Current Executive Board member Geoff Brown, Head of Campus Safety at the University of York, will become the new Vice Chair. After retiring from the police, Geoff worked in Iraq for Heritage Energy Middle East, an Oil company as a security consultant, managing the logistics of local national and expat employees in search for new oil deposits.
“Higher education sector security is both highly challenging and rewarding”
Speaking of his appointment, Curran said: “I am looking forward to stepping up to the position of Chair of AUCSO. I’ve worked in many sectors of the security industry, and the higher education sector is without doubt the most challenging but also the most rewarding. I’m extremely keen and honoured to be working so closely with so many dedicated security professionals and many of our amazing external partners.
“With Geoff by my side and with the other dedicated members of The Executive Committee, I am sure we will continue the incredible work Les achieved whilst he was Chair and together, we will ensure AUCSO is fit for the future ahead.”
Commenting on the announcement, Julie Barker, COO at AUCSO, said: “We are delighted to welcome Oliver and Geoff to their new roles on the Executive Committee and we are looking forward to working with them and all of the Executive Committee members to steer the organisation forward. We have no doubt that it will be a fantastic and rewarding experience for them.”
AUCSO Annual Awards 2023 shortlist
In related news, AUCSO has also announced its Annual Awards 2023 shortlist.
The winners will be announced at a Gala Dinner on Thursday 20 April 2023 at the Signet Library in Edinburgh.
The award ceremony forms part of the 2023 AUCSO Annual Conference and AGM taking place from Tuesday 18 April 2023 until Thursday 20 April 2023.
This year’s Conference theme is ‘The Changing Face of Security in Higher Education’ and will see over 200 delegates attend from Higher Education organisations in the UK and Ireland, Australia, South Africa, USA, Qatar as well as a large contingent from Europe.
The Annual Awards celebrate the amazing work security teams have achieved within their institutions during 2022.
The awards shortlist is:
AUCSO Security Officer of the Year
Jean McKinlay ,University of Glasgow
Paul McCarry, University of Glasgow
Mark Neary, Manchester Metropolitan University
Gina Hamilton, Heriot-Watt University
Ian MacAdam, Edge Hill University
AUCSO Security Team of the Year
Security Team D – Colchester, University of Essex
Campus Security Team 1, University of Glasgow
AUCSO Security Manager of the Year
Dale Murphy, University of Hertfordshire
Cliff Law, Kings College London
Adrian Dennehy, Cardiff Metropolitan University
Gary Stephen, University of Glasgow
Commenting on the awards shortlist, AUCSO Chief Operating Officer, Julie Barker, says: “We’re delighted to announce this year’s awards shortlist and it’s wonderful to see such a breadth of universities being shortlisted from across the UK.
“As with previous years, the awards are hugely competitive with so many great submissions it’s always so difficult to select the shortlist. We’re very much looking forward to announcing the winners later this month at our glittering Black Tie Gala Dinner.”
Read further insight from AUCSO in the articles below:
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AUCSO announces Oliver Curran as new Chair and Geoff Brown as Vice ChairOliver Curran and Geoff Brown have been announced as new Chair and Vice Chair of the Association of University Chief Security Officers.
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