The National Protective Security Authority (NPSA) in collaboration with the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) and Police Crime Prevention Initiatives (CPI), have created the Security Overlay to the RIBA Plan of Work (overlay available below) which is for everyone involved in the safe and secure design, construction and operation of any building. We are confident this will become a valuable industry document to support better long term security outcomes for everyone involved in the lifecycle of a building.
The key benefits to the different members of any project adopting this overlay go beyond ensuring that a building is safer for its occupant:
- For project teams, this overlay considers the threats and determines the project-specific security risks from the outset using the security risk assessment, leveraging security as an enabler for better outcomes on a wide range of topics, from operations to user safety.
- For clients, ensuring the security risk assessment is undertaken in advance of, or as part of, the briefing process informs the security requirements that will drive confidence that effective measures are in place before the building is occupied, and mitigate against expensive retrofitting.
- For architects and design teams integrating security measures into the design as early as possible, including physical and technological features, leverages the expertise of the wider security landscape and key stakeholder concerns to deliver a robust security strategy.
- For contractors delivering the project in line with the security strategy, this brings a clearer understanding of why these measures are proposed and provides transparency of any risks for consideration during the construction phase.
- For operators, they receive a building that is aligned with the security plan for effective day-to-day management that keeps occupants and visitors safe and avoids the need for any additional specialists, unsightly security measures, and associated costs
Download the Security Overlay to the RIBA Plan of Work below for complete guidance.
