sia licensing survey results (full report) - home office · sia licensing survey results page 3...

Security Industry Authority PO Box 9 Newcastle-Upon-Tyne NE82 6YX Phone 08702 430 100 Fax 08702 430 125 E-mail [email protected]

www.the-sia.org.uk

SIA licensing survey results July 2007

SIA licensing survey results

Contents Introduction................................................................................................... 3 Methodology ................................................................................................. 3

Response rate ....................................................................................... 3 Results ...................................................................................................... 3

Time to receive an SIA licence .............................................................. 3 Estimates of time spent completing the application form....................... 4 Service performance expectations ........................................................ 4 Attitude to our proposed service changes ............................................. 5

Conclusion.................................................................................................... 7 Part one – individual applicants’ survey........................................................ 7

Introduction ............................................................................................... 7 Expectations of SIA service performance ................................................. 8 Time spent by individual applicants on licence processing ..................... 10

Form completion.................................................................................. 10 Forms returned incomplete.................................................................. 10

Additions to application form/other suggestions...................................... 12 Comments on licence application supporting information ....................... 12 Changes to licence application service ................................................... 13

Part one summary ...................................................................................... 14 Part two – companies survey...................................................................... 14

Introduction ............................................................................................. 14 Service performance expectations .......................................................... 14 Application processing time estimates .................................................... 15

Application form completion................................................................. 15 Management and administrative support............................................. 16 Company support for their employees................................................. 16

Changes to the application form.............................................................. 17 Changes to the licence application service ............................................. 17

Part 2 summary .......................................................................................... 18 Annex A – types of costs incurred by companies in relation to licensing .... 19 Annex B – other suggestions for service improvements ............................. 21


Introduction This is a summary of two surveys we undertook to establish the opinions and expectations of those in the security industry in relation to our proposed improvements of our licence service.

One survey was aimed at security companies and involved meetings and consultations, the other targeted individual licence applicants using our website to collect responses to questions.

Methodology The survey of individual licence applicants was publicised on our website home page and emails were sent to almost 2,000 individuals, inviting them to participate. The survey was available for 12 weeks from January 2007.

The survey of companies took the form of a questionnaire issued at a series of Approved Contractor Scheme forums, British Security Industry Association forums and other meetings from September to November 2006. The survey was also sent to eight companies in the CCTV sector and nine in the cash and valuables in transit sector who hadn’t attended the forums, to help achieve a representative sample across the licensable industry.

Response rate 1,056 individual licence applicants responded to the online survey, of whom around 800 had an SIA licence.

45 company representatives completed the questionnaire for companies, approximately one quarter of all those invited.

Results

Time to receive an SIA licence Just over half of individual applicants reported getting their licence in less than three months. Many reported longer processing times.

During April to May 2007 the actual wait time was eight weeks or less for 77% of applicants.

Whether the reported processing time by respondents was accurate or not, they are expecting a much faster turnaround time than this of 4 weeks (see Service performance expectations below). We are aiming to deliver to this level of service for straight-forward applications (those without criminal records or other complexities).


Estimates of time spent completing the application form Individual

applicants Companies Our proposed service

improvements Time to fill out an application form

1 ½ hours 45 minutes We aim to reduce this by 50% (about. 20-30 minutes) for online renewals

Time to gather documents and supporting information

4 ½ hours 2 days (assumes elapsed

time)

For renewals, no documents will be required if photographic ID was accepted first time around and there are no changes to an applicants’ circumstances or appearance. When the link to the Identity and Passport Service is available only one document will be required for UK passport holders.

Total percentage of applications that were rejected (requiring resubmission)

31%

n/a Online applications and a redesigned application form will help reduce errors.

The combined time spent by companies and their employees on a typical application could be as much as four hours. Much of this (2 hours 20 minutes) is spent by companies’ administrative staff supporting applications.

Through a series of service improvements, including support for online applications and an online application tracking facility for companies, it is expected that these processing times can be reduced dramatically.

Service performance expectations Service performance

expectations Individual applicants

Companies Our proposals

Time to receive a licence

4 weeks 4 weeks 4-6 weeks (for most applicants)

Time to receive application form

4-5 days 2 days 2 days (via contact centre) 5 days (written request)

Contact centre call pick up time

30-40 seconds 20 seconds Within 30 seconds

Contact centre availability

8am to 8pm 8am to 8pm (plus weekends)

8am to 8pm weekdays

Time to respond to email 3 days 1 ½ days 1 - 3 days


Service performance expectations

Individual applicants

Companies Our proposals

Time to respond to fax and letters

5 days 7 days 5 days (including time in post)

Time to reissue lost licence

7 days n/a 7 days

Company and individual expectations are broadly in line with each other, although companies are expecting a faster call pick-up time and a faster response to emails.

Our service performance proposals represent an improvement over current performance and, we hope, will be welcomed by the industry. These proposals will be kept under review and new targets introduced as necessary.

Attitude to our proposed service changes Individual applicants

Priority (1= high, 5= low)

Companies Priority

(1= high, 5= low)

Our proposals

1. Renewals – automatic reminder

n/a 1 We will send out reminders four months before a licence expires

2. Renewals – reduce need to send ID documents

1 1 If photographic ID was accepted first time around, and there is no change to circumstances or appearance, there will be no need to re-send ID documents

3. Blank application forms

2 1 We will provide blank application forms

4. Online applications 1 2 There will be an online application facility

5. Tracking – individual applications

1 1 Individuals will be able to track the progress of their application online


Individual applicants Priority

(1= high, 5= low)

Companies Priority

(1= high, 5= low)

Our proposals

6. Tracking – company applications

2 1 Companies will be able to track the progress of employees’ applications online

7. Secure return of documents

1 1 Group A documents will be returned by recorded delivery.

8. Applications by companies via the web

3 2 An online Corporate application process will be introduced

9. Corporate applications – from company HR systems

n/a 2 We are not proposing to accept corporate applications from HR systems at present.

10. Check passport no. with Identity and Passport Service

1 1 A link to the Identity and Passport Service will enable us to check applicant details automatically

11. ID document checks by companies

2 1 We are not proposing to allow companies to check ID documents

12. Recognition of overseas qualifications

n/a 3 We will be required to consider overseas qualifications under EU directive 2005/36/EU

Only two suggestions from the survey are not planned to be implemented at this time:

• Corporate applications direct from the HR systems, primarily because of the need to ensure accuracy of employee data; and

• ID document checks by companies, primarily because of the need to ensure consistent checks on potentially fraudulent applications. There


may also be a risk that employers sign for documents that had not been properly verified, due to the pressure to deploy staff as quickly as possible. Document checking expertise will therefore be concentrated at the SIA.

Conclusion From the results of the surveys we are confident that the planned service improvements will meet the expectations of individual applicants and companies involved in administration of applications.

The main service improvements will include;

• A simplified application form and revised documentation policy, minimising the risk of lost documents and speeding up the application process

• Online applications processes for individuals and companies • An enhanced online tracker facility so that applicants and companies

can monitor the progress of an application • Improvements to the contact centre including greater use of email and

outbound calls to resolve application issues.

Additionally we will be measuring future customer satisfaction levels to ensure we maintain a standard of performance that licence applicants expect. We will also introduce improvements in monitoring of application volumes to ensure we remain responsive to peaks in demand. The new service is designed to be adaptable and flexible to change. Additional service changes will be kept under review and implemented where feasible.

Part one – individual applicants’ survey

Introduction The online survey for individual applicants was launched in January 2007 and held open for 12 weeks. A breakdown of responses by industry sector is shown in Table 1.


Sector Responses by sector Proportion of

survey group (%) Sector as proportion of total licensed population

Door supervisor 424 47% 39% CVIT 5 1% 4% CCTV 57 6% 4% Close Protection 37 4% 1% Key holding 7 1% 1% Security Guard 349 39% 51% Vehicle immobiliser 20 2% 1% Total 899

(806 individuals*) 100% 100%

Non-licence holders

250

Total 1,056

Table 1: Responses by industry sector

*Around 90 of these (10%) held licences for more than one sector compared to 2.5% in the general licence population.

The sector proportions in the survey group are roughly the same as the sector proportions in the wider licensed population, and therefore representative. However Internet access was required to participate in the survey so technically literate users may be over-represented.

Of licence holders responding, approximately 7% were non-front line (i.e. with some managerial responsibility). This compares to 2.5% of non-frontline licence holders in the wider licence holding population

Expectations of SIA service performance a) Time to receive an SIA licence

Performance measure Reported current performance (to the nearest month)

Respondents’ desired performance

Time to receive an SIA licence

28% waited 2 months or less51% waited 3 months or less

4 weeks

Between April to May 2007 65% of applicants receive an SIA licence within two months of applying. Many of the survey group will have applied during the rush leading up to the March 2006 deadline for security guarding licences. This might help to explain the lengthier waiting period reported by some of the survey group.


b) Support with form filling and checking progress

54% of individual applicants reported getting in touch with our contact centre to check on the progress of their application. Many applicants called three or more times.

Progress chasing by individual applicants

050

100150200250300350400450

No Once Twice 3+ times

c) Performance indicators

We asked individual applicants what level of service they expected in relation to service levels. These are summarised in table 2 below.

Service level Expectation Our proposed service performance

Time to receive an application form on request (days)

4 – 5 days 5 days (allowing 2 days in post)

End-to-end time to process a licence application (weeks)

4 weeks 4-6 weeks – but depends on complexity

Call pick-up time (seconds) 30 to 40 seconds 30 seconds Contact centre open times 8am to 8pm 8am to 8pm Time taken to respond to emails (days)

3 days max. 1-3 days

Time taken to respond to letters/faxes (days)

5 days 5 days including post time

Time taken to re-issue licence if reported lost/stolen (days)

7 days 7 days

Table 2: Service performance expectations (individuals)

It is apparent that there is a relatively close match between the expectations of those taking the survey and the planned service improvements.


Time spent by individual applicants on licence processing

Form completion Most individual applicants (84%) had filled out an application form.

The average time taken to fill out the application form was 1 hour 30 minutes. The gathering of necessary documents was reported to take an average of 4 hours 30 minutes per application, although much of this might be elapsed time rather than time physically spent searching.

The time taken to gather documents will be significantly improved for two reasons:

• for renewals no identity documents need to be supplied if the applicant previously provided photographic identity and their name and address have not changed;

• new applicants with a UK passport will be able to supply only one document as proof of address by providing their passport number on the new, revised application form.

Other statistics:

• 46% had help from their employer to complete the form • 22% had to specially request a document • 9% had to provide an overseas criminality check, military record or

sworn oath • It took on average 24 days to obtain these documents and

unfortunately this is outside of our control. Targets have been set for those parts of the licensing process under our control. We will monitor the overall processing time.

Forms returned incomplete 31% had their application returned as incomplete, which is broadly in line with statistics we have obtained separately from the overall service. Several improvements will be implemented later in the year that should help to cut down the rejection rate. These include;

• improvements to the application form, • revised guidance for applicants, and • the opportunity to apply for a licence via the web. Online applications

will effectively be automatically checked before processing.


% of application forms returned incomplete - individuals

Accepted first time 69%

3 times or more 3%

Twice 7%

Once 21%

Almost half (44%) of those that had had their forms returned said that the enclosed letter they received did not make the reason for return sufficiently clear. We will be taking steps to improve communication of reasons for rejection. The letter issued with rejected applications will include fuller and more accurate reasons than before. Applicants will be also able to track their application online and we be able to see when the application is held up.

The following sections of the application form were highlighted by respondents as causing the most problems:

Section % of all responses to question

Problem highlighted

Our proposed service improvements

B Relevant Qualifications

20% Variety of certificate types. Sometimes held by company

This section is to be reduced from 16 fields covering full certification details to just two: date of training and name of awarding body

E Counter signatory signature

20% Availability of counter signatory. Uncertainty over suitability

Counter signatory by UK passport holder only (no need to specify occupation) with an alternative process for applicants where this is not possible

F Address history

10% Difficulties with recalling accurate details

Full five year address history is still required for the criminality check

Table 3: Problems with application form

As noted in table 3 above, a new application form, simplified where possible, will be delivered as part of our proposed service improvements to help reduce the time taken to complete it and reduce the instances of returned incomplete applications.


Additions to application form/other suggestions Respondents were asked if any items should be added to the application form. The main comments are summarised in table 4 below.

Comment Our proposed service improvements

Rationale

Extended disclosure of criminality by applicants

None Sufficient checks are already undertaken via Criminal Records Bureau

A recorded delivery option for the return of documents

All Group A identity documents will be returned by recorded delivery

Current employer details None The administration cost of this option prevents its inclusion

Previous licence and multi-sector information on the same form

The application form will be amended to incorporate multi-sector applications

Online survey at the point of form completion to assist in recording customer satisfaction levels

May be possible in the longer term

The current development is concentrating on shorter term, immediate improvements

Publicise qualification requirements at renewal via the website and in guidance notes

Website and guidance notes will be updated

Provide more information to companies about the licence process

This will be addressed as part of the new corporate application processes

Table 4: Additions to application form and other suggestions

Comments on licence application supporting information Supporting documents were rated as shown in table 5 below:

Not helpful Adequate Helpful ‘How to fill in your licence application form’ notes

12% 46% 42%

‘Get Licensed’ leaflet

6% 52% 42%

Table 5: Views on the supporting information

This indicates that the vast majority of respondents (around 90% or more) found the documents at least adequate.


A few respondents indicated the following problem areas with the ‘How to fill in your licence application’ booklet:

• Supporting documents (section D) – 11% • Relevant qualifications (section B) – 6% • Counter signatory identity (section E) – 6%

The application form completion notes will be completely revised for the new service to reflect the new application form. In the ‘Get Licensed’ booklet a small proportion of people (around 4% of the sample) highlighted the following four sections as “most difficult to understand”;

• Who needs a licence and when • Licence integration • Complaints procedure • List of offences

The ‘Get Licensed’ booklet has already been revised (May 2007) and the new version is in circulation. Overall these figures represent an encouraging response to our literature about licensing.

Changes to licence application service All nine of our suggestions made for potential changes to the service were generally supported by individual applicants.

0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%

Renewals: no need to send ID documents

Blank application forms

Online applications

Corporate applications

Online tracker - individual

Online tracker - corporate

Secure return of documents

ID check on IPS database

ID document checks by employer

Individual survey views on potential service changes

Yes (%)Don’t mind (%)No (%)


Most of the service improvement suggestions are planned for implementation, with the exception of ID document checks by employers. A policy decision taken since the survey was distributed has ruled out document checks by companies for the time being. The rationale is that document checks would not be subject to a consistent standard. There may also be a risk that employers sign for documents that had not been properly verified, due to the pressure to deploy staff as quickly as possible.

Part one summary In summary, it seems that we are well placed to meet most of the service improvement expectations of individual applicants on the basis of current plans.

The experience of individual applicants and those renewing existing licences should be greatly improved under the new service. We are aiming to deliver a more efficient service, resulting in faster processing of applications but no loss to rigour of identity and qualification checks. Together with significant improvements to the call centre service, including greater use of email and outbound calls to resolve application issues, major new service features will include the means to apply for licences online and an application tracking facility will also be available.

Part two – companies survey

Introduction During meetings with around 200 companies at a series of Approved Contractor Scheme forums, British Security Industry Association forums and other meetings, a questionnaire survey was issued. The survey was also sent to eight companies in the CCTV sector and nine in the cash and valuables in transit sector who hadn’t attended the forums, to help achieve a representative sample across the licensable industry.

Forty five firms responded, approximately one quarter of all those invited.

Service performance expectations Companies provided their views of what would be a good service across a number of areas. Table 6 compares these with our proposed service improvements.


Service topic In your opinion,

what would be a good service?

Our proposed service performance

Time to receive application form(s) on request

2 days Despatched immediately (2 days in the post)

End-to-end time to process a licence application

4 weeks 4-6 weeks (dependent on complexity)

Contact centre availability

a. Call pick up time (seconds)

b. Hours available

20 seconds

12 hours (i.e. 8am until 8pm)

30 seconds

8am to 8pm

Response to letters

c. Time to respond

7 days

5 days

(incl. post time)

Response to emails

d. Time to respond

1½ days

1-3 days

Table 6: Service performance expectations

Companies were invited to suggest other ways in which the service could be improved. For a summary of responses see Annex B together with a commentary on our current proposals to address these where relevant.

Application processing time estimates

Application form completion Companies were asked about the application form process. Interestingly form completion was estimated at just half that of the individual applicant respondents. This might be because with expert support, individuals are able to complete the form much more quickly.

Time taken How long on average does an individual need to complete the SIA licence application form?

45 minutes

How long does it take to gather the documents, photograph and payment to submit the application?

Typically 2 days (elapsed)


Management and administrative support Companies were asked about the effort and resource they allocated to support the licensing process.

1. How much time is spent typically chasing progress or responding to queries before the decision was finally made?

Up to 3 hours per case

2. How much management and administration time does your company put into the licence application process – in addition to the individuals filling in forms?

Average: 1.7 staff members

3. How many applications have these people helped process over the past year?

Average: 1,000

4. Has your company incurred other (unexpected) costs as a result of licensing? E.g. systems changes

see Annex A

The answers to questions 2 and 3 above allow a calculation of the average administrative staffing hours per application. This produced an estimate of 2 hours 20 minutes per application, significantly higher than the time taken to complete the form (45 minutes).

Even allowing for possible inaccurate reporting by some companies, this is an indication that the time required is higher than ideal.

Company support for their employees Many companies expressed frustration at the difficulty in supporting their employees with the licence application process. Some of this was because of the lack of information provided to companies, sometimes for Data Protection Act reasons; and some was because our licensing processes were built around dealing with the individual rather than company representatives.

Within our new proposals, we plan a range of enhancements to help companies take control of the application process for their employees. This includes an online corporate application tracker and online batch application submission.


Changes to the application form Companies were asked whether they would like to see changes to the application form.

A small forum of the British Dyslexia Association was also consulted to make comments on the application form and these have been taken forward where possible.

All comments made have been considered as part of a comprehensive review of the application form. In addition to specific comments on sections of the form, there were the following general points:

Comment Our proposed service improvements Concerns that application forms are rejected on unreasonable grounds.

Rules relating to rejection have been reviewed to maximise the likelihood of progressing applications. Our contact centre will attempt to make contact with applicants to correct minor problems where possible. Blue and black ink will be accepted on the new application form.

Registered approved contractors or bulk application administrators should be allowed to act as counter signatories with their name and signature and ID number as confirmation.

The move to UK passport holders as counter signatories should help this.

Changes to the licence application service There was broad support for our proposed service improvements. Table 7 below shows typical (average) scores given by companies, and indicates whether the change will be included in our proposals.

1 = very important 5 = not important

Included in proposals?

Functional changes to service

1 2 3 4 5 1. Renewals process – automatic

reminder letter to individual 3 months before expiry

1 Yes (letter to be issued 4 months in advance)

2. Renewal process - no need to re-supply ID documents on application

1 Yes (unless there are changes to name, address, etc)

3. Blank application forms (redesigned) available to companies, training providers, etc. in bulk on request

1 Yes


1 = very important 5 = not important

Included in proposals?

Functional changes to service

1 2 3 4 5 4. Online application and payment:

‘e-licensing’ for individuals 2 Yes

5. Tracker available to individuals online and via our contact centre to check current application status

1 Yes

6. Tracker – for companies – to check current application status

1 Yes

7. Tracker – for companies – licence status (including revoked, suspended)

1 Yes

8. Return of documents by courier 1 Yes (for Group A identity documents)

9. Electronic applications by companies 2 Yes

10. Electronic applications by companies – linked to company HR systems

2 No. Not in initial launch; may be added later

11. No need for passport document – look up passport number on Identity and Passport Service database

1 Yes (subject to agreement with Identity and Passport Service)

12. ID document checks by selected companies (e.g. approved companies) on renewal so no need to re-supply original documents

1 No*

13. Recognition of overseas qualifications or certificates to meet some criteria

3 Yes

Table 7: Companies’ responses to proposed service improvements

* A policy decision taken since the survey was distributed has ruled out document checks by companies for the time being

Part 2 summary From the responses provided by companies, it seems that we can be confident that our proposed service improvements will meet the majority of companies’ expectations.

There will be new features to facilitate online applications and tracking of applications. The corporate applications process will be streamlined with a simplified payments processes and the return of documents to companies. Improvements to our contact centre will include greater use of email and outbound calls to resolve application issues.


Annex A – types of costs incurred by companies in relation to licensing Unexpected costs reported by companies to meet licensing requirements related to:

• Staffing • Postage • Phone calls • Adaptations to IT systems • Recorded delivery charges • Courier costs when submitting documents to SIA • Time for re-submissions • Wages costs for suspended persons • Wages costs for staff near retirement who do not re-apply owing to cost

of licence • Supervisory time overseeing processes • Waiting time on hold to contact centre • Trainers, and training of trainers • Short term cover costs when application rejected • Training and applications related to TUPE transfers from companies

who have not complied with the law • Loss of documents by SIA resulting in personal costs and/or cost to

company (re-imbursements) • Administration and stationery costs of licence dispensation notices • Costs of Approved Contractor Scheme audit in addition to paying

Approved Contractor Scheme application and annual registration fees • Administration costs related to chasing problem cases • Printing/ stationery costs • Appeals costs • Digital cameras • Flight costs • Loss of revenue as unregulated companies undercut those SIA are

regulating • Involvement of senior management especially at outset • Time taken to prepare application form and acquire documents from

staff • Process writing and amending • Cost of training to cover additional sectors for multi-functional staff • Establishment of licensing department


• Cost of administering second sector refund (collecting staff consents to refund monies to company)

Some companies were able to quantify specific costs:

1. One firm reported costs of £18,000 to achieve compliance in time for deadlines

2. Another reports HR system amendments, and additional documentation of processes, 21 staff-days, £20,000 (700 staff processed)

3. Another estimated total costs of £40,000, training and other costs (presumed annual; 600 staff processed)


Annex B – other suggestions for service improvements Contact centre Suggestions to be taken forward Improvement to response times

Yes - built in to new proposals

Direct access to customer service representative

Yes - separate telephone number for companies

Visits to contact centre etc

Not considered necessary

Case specific information from customer service representative to company

Online tracker will provide range of information

Contact centre to run 7 days per week

5 days only (cost reasons).

Pro-active resolution by customer service representatives

Yes

Call back service

Not a standard feature but outbound calls will be used

Answer more than one query per call at contact centre

Yes

Complaints Compensation for mistakes

Yes, as at present

Lack of call centre support leading to increased costs

Yes - significant investment in contact centre

Corporate Bulk application submissions - updates to company

Yes

Notify company of refusals

Yes

Company to recoup fees if applicant pulls out

No if application is in progress

Courier/ checking service Courier service including form completion

Yes for “Group A” identity documents

Criminality Inform company of rejections if due to criminality

Yes


Approved Contractor Scheme Suggestions to be taken forward Information on appeal processing and rejections for approved companies

Yes – key stages but not detail (personal)

Customer service Make application forms available at public offices such as Post Offices

Possible. Wide availability of forms

Development Ministry of Defence cleared staff to be deployable

No – recent Criminal Record Check/Scottish Criminal Records Office check required

Enforcement More frequent and stronger investigations

Being addressed separately

Licence One licence card for all sectors No – but one application form for all

sectors Marketing Licensing and Approved Contractor Scheme communications improvement

Yes where specific requirements are identified

Representation Industry representation on SIA boards

Outside scope; for separate consideration

Regular liaison with companies

On-going consultation is expected

Regular meetings with SIA staff

As above

Register of licence holders Confirm expiry date on website Yes Tracker Acknowledgement and status updates

Yes – Online tracker

To be informed if rejection

Yes

Approved contractors can track individual apps

Yes – all companies not just approved contractors

Other software package to support licensing process

Yes - online application process (web forms)

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