Head of Security

Select how often (in days) to receive an alert:

Leads and shapes the security strategy across UK & Ireland, ensuring the safety of customers, colleagues, and assets - combining strategic leadership, operational oversight, and risk management to deliver a safe, secure environment and protect the business from fraud, theft, and other threats.

What you'll be doing:

• Develop, implement and maintain a comprehensive security and loss-prevention strategy aligned with the organisation’s commercial objectives, operational priorities and risk appetite.
• Provide visible executive leadership for the transformation and continuous improvement of security operations across the UK and Ireland estate, ensuring consistent standards, controls and operating procedures.
• Act as the senior point of accountability for all security matters, including critical incident response, crisis management, major investigations and business continuity support.
• Establish and maintain an effective security governance framework, with clear policies, escalation protocols, decision rights and assurance processes.
• Ensure compliance with all applicable legislation, regulatory requirements and internal policies, including UK and EU data protection requirements, Security Industry Authority regulations, human rights considerations and health and safety standards.
• Direct a programme of security risk assessments, site audits and control reviews across the estate, ensuring that remedial actions are proportionate, prioritised, assigned and completed within agreed timescales.
• Lead or oversee sensitive and complex investigations relating to theft, fraud, violence, misconduct, organised crime and other security breaches, ensuring evidence is obtained, retained and handled appropriately.
• Work in close partnership with Legal, the People Team, Store Operations, Risk, Technology and other relevant functions to investigate incidents, manage risk and deliver effective resolutions.
• Build and maintain strong relationships with Store Managers, Operations Managers, landlords, police forces, industry bodies, insurers and specialist security partners.
• Provide regular, high-quality reporting to senior leadership on security performance, emerging threats, incident trends, material risks, control effectiveness and recommended interventions.

• Define and monitor appropriate security performance measures, using data and intelligence to identify trends, prioritise investment, deploy resources effectively and evaluate outcomes.
• Manage the outsourced security guarding contract, holding providers accountable for service delivery, legal compliance, colleague standards, incident response, cost control and value for money.
• Oversee the Security Operations function, including real-time CCTV monitoring, incident triage, escalation, intelligence gathering, command and control, and coordinated operational response.
• Set the strategic direction for security technology, including CCTV, access control, alarms, body-worn video and analytical tools, ensuring solutions are compliant, effective, scalable and commercially justified.
• Develop and test crisis-management, emergency-response and business-continuity arrangements, ensuring lessons from incidents and exercises are translated into measurable improvements.
• Prepare and manage the security budget, business cases and investment programme, ensuring expenditure is risk-based, controlled and aligned with agreed business priorities.
• Recruit, lead and develop a high-performing security team, setting clear expectations, strengthening capability and promoting professional, ethical and accountable conduct.
• Develop and deliver security awareness, violence-prevention and incident-response training to strengthen…