Farming sector bites back at organised crime
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The farming sector is hitting back at the wave of organised crime which is now estimated to be costing UK agriculture as much as £50million per year*.
With a recent survey by the NFU*2 suggesting that more than one third of farm businesses in the East of England suffered crime in the last year, with theft of farm machinery, tools and metal the common targets for organised criminals, more farms are demanding high tech security solutions, which are being adapted from commercial situations.
A recognised authority in security technology speaking on the trend has said it’s forcing security suppliers to think outside the box to manage the different threats found on the farm.
Neil Jackson, who has been involved in a number of advisory panels for the industry regulator, the British Security Association (BSIA), explained: “It’s a big challenge, but with the level of losses being suffered by the agricultural sector, the security industry has got to find the right solutions. Figures suggest that many crimes are going unreported, because farmers think the police do not have the resources, but having the right sort of system installed to an industry-standard means you’re guaranteed a police response.“
Some of the examples given include arable farmers C F Hardy in Lincolnshire. They are using a state of the art control system to combine security with production control. The control system incorporates intruder protection, cctv and heat detection. The cctv is remotely monitored by a 24-hour control room and together with infra red lighting, it gives the farm assured police call-out as the system complies with the BS8418 standard. As well as monitoring for intruders, the heat detectors in each of the eleven ambient stores are designed to trigger cctv cameras for visual verification by the control room if temperatures change.
Another sophisticated security solution has been designed to deliver both internal and external protection for Lincolnshire horticulture business R Fountain and Sons. With cctv cameras and remote monitoring, the system also includes infra red lighting together with an integrated intruder alarm and is protecting two solar fields as well as extensive glass houses on site. Integrated access control operates in all the areas, with live monitoring of doors to ensure they remain closed and keep out animals and pests, and temperatures inside glasshouses are also being continually monitored.
Neil Jackson, who is well known in the agri-sector through his work in the East of England as sales director of GB Security Group, added: “The system at Fountains is an example of what can be done if you stretch the boundaries. Here the extent of remote control and checks is being achieved by exploiting video receiving capabilities.”
Solutions are also being adapted for smaller farm security issues, such as false alarming due to vermin chewing cables, which has been overcome for Casswells Farmers in Donington. If an intruder enters the site, external infra red beams will detect movement and activate an ultra loud masterblaster siren. At the same time as the beam goes off and the blaster sounds, a cctv camera is activated, linked to a screen in the nearby farmhouse.
ENDS
*NFU Mutual annual Rural Crime Survey – figures published 2011 related to 2010 statistics and showed a cost of £49.6million.
*2 NFU survey amongst members – published June 2012
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Editor’s Note:
GB Security Group has a 30 year track record in security and fire protection, with customers ranging from multi-site food processing plants, commercial businesses, professional firms and schools through to retailers and housebuilders. Their portfolio delivers a complete range of security products and services, backed up with leading edge technical expertise, including:
- CCTV
- Fire Alarms
- Guarding Services
- Intruder Alarms
- Access Control
- Gates & Barriers
- CCTV Monitoring
- Integrated Systems
GB Security Group also operates its own specialist 24 hour remote monitoring centre. working to the highest achievable accreditation levels with NSI and SIA, and with a proven track record since 1993. All monitoring centre staff are SIA licensed for monitoring both private and public space and the company operates under the Approved Contractors Scheme (ACS), the independently assessed quality standard for suppliers of private security services.
Peak performers scoop LawNet Challenge
A group of London lawyers has taken the LawNet Challenge title, after battling with torrential rain and mud to become the only team to complete this year’s punishing 28 mile course.
The Barker Gillette team, comprising partners Steven Barker and Qaiser Khanzada and office assistant Marc De Vera, completed the gruelling trek in the Shutlingsloe area of the Peak District in 11 hours and 40 minutes.
Over 70 walkers in 16 teams had started out, all drawn from LawNet member firms across the country, but only four walkers managed to complete the trek – the three remaining members of the team from Barker Gillette and LawNet organiser George Coombes.
Qaiser Khanzada said: “Our success was down to the excellent map reading skills of Steven Barker, who is a seasoned walker and really knows how to navigate. We also took tips from the local sheep, which were sheltering by the stone walls, and we tried to do the same when Singapore-style rain was combined with biting wind. But we are very pleased we made it – although very sore too.”
Each year leading law firm network LawNet arranges a Challenge event for its 67-strong membership of independent firms. Previous events have included the Yorkshire Three Peaks Challenge and Striding Edge to Helvellyn.
It’s organised by George Coombes, LawNet’s Marketing & Services Manager, who said: “We thought it was bad luck last June when there was snowfall just a week before we tackled Snowdon. But the weather this weekend was even worse, with already wet ground becoming impossible as we were hit by downpours from lunchtime on. The field sections of the walk were like a bog, and the up and downhill sections gradually became a mud slide.”
One team of walkers found themselves five miles off track, and despite getting back on to the route, were forced to retire when they could not reach the final checkpoint in time. The conditions saw most people forced to give up about half way through and the winning Barker Gillette team lost two members at 26 miles, just a mile before the final check point, when Laura St-Gallay was injured and colleague Penny Bax stayed with her whilst help arrived.
The challenge is overseen by a support team of mountaineering experts, and support leader Stephen Evered said: “We saw a few who were really struggling around the third and fourth checkpoint, but who carried on regardless, which was surely a huge personal achievement for them. We also were impressed by the leadership of some of the team captains who maintained their group’s morale, even though some were really struggling.
LawNet chief executive John Thomas added: “It was great to see the determination and enthusiasm of all the members who took part in such tough conditions.”
ENDS
For further information, please contact:
Press information:
Maggie Taylor, Prima PR & Marketing
Direct line: 01400 251557 Mobile: 0797 3767602 Email: maggie@primapr.co.uk
Helen Hamilton-Shaw, Director of Services, LawNet
Direct line: 01926 834622 Email: hhamilton-shaw@lawnet.co.uk
Notes to Editor:
About LawNet:
The combined income of the 67 firms comprising LawNet is currently in excess of £250m – equivalent to a UK Top 15 law firm – with members ranging from £2m to £20m turnover.
Independent research shows LawNet is most highly valued by members for delivering in six key areas – training, networking, PII, business development, marketing and compliance. It currently places some £1.2bn worth of PI cover alone for members each year, which helps stabilise premiums for firms.
Each year LawNet delivers over 40 CPD accredited learning events at venues throughout the UK, covering a wide range of technical legal updates, practice management and business development topics, including a leading-edge strategic leadership and management development programme. All the learning days are CPD accredited, many are provided as a free service within membership, and the member-defined programme ensures that topics tackle key issues affecting that particular area of practice.
All LawNet firms must achieve ISO 9001:2008 LawNet Quality Standard certification within two years of joining, and securing and maintaining that accreditation is a condition of membership. Through a unique agreement with the Law Society, firms can also secure and hold the Lexcel practice management standard and benefit from a simplified dual auditing process for the two marks, with the independent assessment delivered through LawNet.
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