Door staff crisis looming as leisure sector booms

Owners of pub chains and nightclubs the length and breadth of Britain are having to balance the leisure industry boom with fears that suitably qualified and trained door supervisors will be increasingly hard to find, sparking concerns that many operations will have to close their doors or prepare to operate illegally.

The shortage of trained door staff is likely to worsen, with the latest reports indicating that two-thirds of pubs and bars are expected to extend their drinking hours when the 24-hour regime introduced by the Licensing Act takes effect. It’s also reported that 10,000 new pubs and bars will open every year in the first three years of round-the-clock licensing.

According to Rob Roseveare, a security specialist at City & Guilds, club managers and licensees are expecting a “door staff drought” this year as demand far exceeds supply. “If this surplus demand continues,” Roseveare told SMT, “we could well see qualified door staff naming their price in the short term.” The situation is particularly acute in London’s West End, where licensed premises have boomed since the early 1990s. There are now 3,560 places where you may be served an alcoholic drink, up by 35% in just a decade.

Roseveare confirmed to SMT that the door staff shortage is already having a major impact. “Some venues had to reduce their capacity for parties over the Christmas and New Year periods,” suggested Roseveare, before adding: “While many licensees have taken a responsible approach towards providing a safe environment for customers, there’s grave concern that many will simply turn a blind eye.”

During the past 12 months, of course, the existing pool of practising door staff has been reduced following the Security Industry Authority’s introduction of licensing, which means that all door staff must have a licence to operate legally as of next month. The procedure for gaining a licence involves passing criminal checks administered by the Criminal Records Bureau, and attending a training course which leads to the National Certificate for Door Supervisors Award.

The National Certificate aims to give door staff the necessary skills and competencies they need to improve customer care and safety, and also keep abreast of regulatory and operational changes in what is one of Britain’s fastest-growing sectors.