4 September 2007: The Security Industry Authority (SIA) is pleased to announce a £3 per head reduction in the annual Approved Contractor Scheme (ACS) registration fee for each licensable employee - from £20 to £17. The reduction takes effect from 1 October 2007*.

The ACS is a non-profit making scheme with the fees set at a break-even level. Since the launch of the ACS it has proved so popular with security companies that there are now more Approved Contractors, employing more licensable staff than initially projected. This means the SIA can reduce the annual licensable employee fees by £3 per head.

Andrew Shephard, SIA Assistant Director, ACS said:

"This is good news for Approved Contractors and helpful to those companies considering applying to the scheme.

The Approved Contractor Scheme has been a great success with more companies than originally forecast seeking and achieving ACS status. As of today, 378 security companies are approved, employing more than 90,000 licensable staff - which is approaching half of the licensable security population in England and Wales.

ACS fees will be reviewed every year and adjusted again if necessary, to ensure that fee income continues to match the costs of the scheme."

Notes to Editors:

• *The announced fee reduction is subject to Parliament's approval of a Statutory Instrument, which is due to come into force on 1 October. The fee may change in the future and in such cases the SIA will publicise any alterations.
• An Impact Assessment is published for information and is made in connection with the laying of the Private Security Industry Act 2001 Regulations (Amendment) Regulations 2007. The document is available from the Home Office website and the SIA website.
• There will be no change to the ACS application fee which covers pre-approval costs because the work involved in processing each new application is in line with the SIA's original assumptions.
• The lower fee of £17 applies to all new and existing Approved Contractors from 1 October 2007. However, any Approved Contractor who has paid in advance past 1 October 2007 will be refunded on a pro-rata basis.