Security Officer CV template (UK, 2026)
A UK security officer CV lives or dies on your SIA licence details, since this is a legal requirement most employers check before reading anything else. Specify the exact licence type (Door Supervisor, Security Guarding, or CCTV), its expiry, and any additional certifications like conflict management. Employers also want evidence of incident reporting and calm decision-making under pressure.
Security Officers: pay and who’s hiring
Security Officers in the UK typically earn between £22,000–£30,000 depending on experience, location, and shift patterns. Employers actively recruiting for this role include G4S, Mitie, Securitas, OCS Group, Bidvest Noonan. Tailoring your CV to each of these employers’ job descriptions — mirroring their exact wording — is what gets you past the ATS and in front of a hiring manager.
Keywords this template targets
- SIA licence
- CCTV
- access control
- patrols
- incident reporting
- conflict resolution
- lone working
Certifications to highlight
- SIA Door Supervisor
- SIA Security Guard
- First aid
- CCTV licence
- Conflict management
Personal statement example
SIA-licensed Security Officer (Door Supervisor) with four years' experience across retail and corporate sites, skilled in access control, CCTV monitoring and incident reporting. Trained in conflict management and first aid, with a proven record of de-escalating situations without incident while maintaining full compliance with site protocols.
Example experience bullet points
Adapt these to your own roles — keep the verb-first structure and swap in your real figures.
- Held valid SIA Door Supervisor licence, conducting access control for a site with 500+ daily visitors
- Monitored CCTV systems across 12 cameras, identifying and reporting security incidents in real time
- Conducted scheduled patrols across a multi-floor site, logging all findings in incident reports
- Applied conflict management training to de-escalate confrontational situations without escalation
- Worked lone-working night shifts, maintaining full compliance with lone-worker safety protocols
Section-by-section structure
- Personal summary — three sentences, lead with role + years + a measurable result.
- Key skills — 8–10 bullets, mixing the keywords above with one transferable soft skill.
- Certifications — bullet each credential with the awarding body and year.
- Experience — reverse chronological. Each role gets 3–5 bullets, each bullet starts with a verb and ends with a number where possible.
- Education — institution, qualification, year. Skip A-Level / GCSE detail if you have 5+ years of experience.
Common security officer CV mistakes
- Omitting the specific SIA licence type and expiry date, which is the single most-checked detail on a security CV
- Not detailing patrol, CCTV or access control responsibilities separately, making experience hard to match to a specific site type
- Leaving out incident reporting examples, which employers use to judge whether you document evidence to a legal standard
Frequently asked
Which SIA licence do I need for a UK security officer role?
It depends on the role: SIA Security Guarding licence covers static and mobile guarding, while SIA Door Supervisor licence is required for pub, club and event work, and a separate CCTV licence covers control room monitoring. Always list the exact licence type on your CV since employers cannot legally place you outside its scope.
Do I need first aid training to work in security?
It is not always mandatory but is highly valued and sometimes required for retail, event and corporate site contracts, since security officers are often first on scene during an incident. Listing a current first aid certificate alongside your SIA licence strengthens your application significantly.
What ATS keywords matter most for a security officer CV?
The strongest signals are: SIA licence, CCTV, access control, patrols, incident reporting, conflict resolution, lone working. Include them in your skills section AND in the body of role descriptions — ATS systems weight contextual mentions higher than skill-list entries.
Should I add SIA Door Supervisor to my CV even if it's just in progress?
Yes — list it clearly with "(in progress, expected [date])". Employers screen-out CVs missing the credential entirely; partial credit is normal when the path is visible.
How long should a security officer CV be in the UK?
Two pages, ideally. For roles with under five years of experience, a single tight page outperforms a padded two-pager. Recruiters spend 6–8 seconds on the first scan.
See live security officer jobs by city
- Security Officers in London
- Security Officers in Manchester
- Security Officers in Birmingham
- Security Officers in Leeds
- Security Officers in Glasgow
- Security Officers in Liverpool
- Security Officers in Bristol
- Security Officers in Sheffield
- Security Officers in Edinburgh
- Security Officers in Cardiff
- Security Officers in Newcastle upon Tyne
- Security Officers in Nottingham
- Security Officers in Southampton
- Security Officers in Reading
- Security Officers in Coventry
- Security Officers in Leicester
- Security Officers in Brighton
- Security Officers in Milton Keynes
- Security Officers in Belfast
- Security Officers in Aberdeen