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News story
The Government Analysis Function D&I Strategy launched in February 2021
People are central to the success of the Government Analysis Function. Diversity is a strength and it’s vital that all analysts feel able to bring their authentic self to work, safe in the knowledge that diverse perspectives and experiences are both valued and respected.
Our vision as a Function is to create a truly diverse and inclusive analysis community that is reflective of the UK society we serve. We are delighted to share the Analysis Function Diversity and Inclusion Strategy for 2021-2024, which outlines our vision for creating a truly inclusive place to work and build a career.
The approach outlined in this strategy is delivery-driven and has been comprised by members for members, based on evidence from 2020 Diversity and Inclusion (D&I) survey and subsequent consultation sessions. It will remain agile and iterative, adapting and developing alongside our own understanding of the analytical community and the challenges faced by our members.
As a Function, we all have a duty to take meaningful action and achieve genuine change through ownership, understanding and accountability. If you would like to influence and drive forward positive change at Function level, we would encourage you to join our Diversity and Inclusion Working group.
Please contact Eleanor.Williams@ons.gov.uk for more information.
Published 5 February 2021
A new partnership between the UK Government and vaccine manufacturer CureVac has been established to rapidly develop new vaccines in response to new Covid-19 variants if needed.
Both the Pfizer/BioNTech and Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccines are safe and effective and appear to work well against the Covid-19 variants currently dominant in the UK.
The new agreement will utilise UK expertise on genomics and virus sequencing to allow new varieties of vaccines based on messenger RNA technology to be developed quickly against new strains of Covid-19 if they are needed.
The Government is establishing an expert advisory group to identify the variants that the UK could need vaccines against.
Through the agreement announced today, the UK has placed an initial order for 50 million doses of new vaccines to be delivered later this year if they are required.
This is in addition to the broader portfolio of 407 million doses already secured by the UK Government to date.
Almost all vaccines developed through this partnership against new Covid-19 strains will be variants of an existing jab by CureVac which is currently undergoing Phase 3 clinical trials, meaning it should be possible to accelerate clinical trials ahead of submission to the regulator for approval. The UK will use its partnership with CureVac to boost the UK’s capacity to develop and manufacture variant vaccines in the UK, strengthening our domestic capabilities.
The process is similar to the method used to update flu vaccines each year – updated and accelerated using the newly-proven mRNA technology that can be reformulated against variants more quickly than older and more traditional vaccine technologies. mRNA technology is already being used in the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines approved for use in the UK.
Business Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng said:
The UK’s vaccine programme has been a national success story so far, and we are determined to make sure we’re as prepared as we can be in the long-term if new variants of Covid-19 emerge.
This fantastic new partnership means we can work to swiftly tweak and rollout new variations of existing vaccines if we need to, while also building up Britain’s vaccine manufacturing base in the process.
Health and Social Care Secretary Matt Hancock said:
The vaccines we are deploying now are safe and effective, with the latest evidence suggesting they provide protection against new strains of Covid-19.
But we must be prepared for all eventualities and bolster onshore UK manufacturing capacity to develop vaccines to combat new variants of the disease, taking advantage of our world-leading genomics expertise.
This will help ensure we can continue to provide everyone with a high level of protection against the virus and save lives.
Deputy Chief Medical Officer, Professor Jonathan Van-Tam said:
While the vaccines currently being deployed in the UK appear to work well against the Covid-19 variants currently dominant in the UK, the virus continues to mutate and it is likely that our vaccines will have to adapt to continue to offer the best possible protection. Being able to create these new vaccines at speed will allow our scientists to keep ahead of the virus as they do every year with the influenza vaccine.
Vaccines Minister Nadhim Zahawi said:
This is exactly the kind of work that will stand us in good stead as we continue our monumental national effort to end this pandemic and return to normality.
Of course we urge people to continue to take up the chance to have a vaccine when they are invited to – all of which are safe and have been proven to be effective against the virus.
Interim Chair of the Vaccines Taskforce Clive Dix said:
Today’s agreement will mean the UK is better prepared for the emergence of any significant new virus variant.
Because these mRNA vaccines can be rapidly adapted we will be ready to respond swiftly to new strains and update vaccines in the same way the flu vaccine is updated each year – a vital part of ending the pandemic once and for all.
The UK Government’s new expert advisory group will look at both current and potential future virus variants. This will involve using the world-leading UK Science Surveillance networks alongside genomic sequencing technologies and clinical trial capabilities to allow the rapid identification of and response to virus variants.
To date, the UK Government has invested over £300 million into manufacturing a successful vaccine.
The UK was the first country in the world to procure, authorise and then deploy both the Oxford/AstraZeneca and Pfizer/BioNTech vaccines.
In 2021 we made some changes to the training you need to take before you can get a front line SIA licence.
The changes were:
We made more changes in 2022:
We explain these changes in more detail below.
We have also created a flowchart to explain what the changes mean for people applying for a door supervisor or security guard licence.
We need to make sure that people working in the private security industry can:
We now expect applicants for a door supervisor or security guard licence to complete a first aid qualification before taking their licence-linked training.
You need to do this if either of the following apply:
You also need to do this if you are renewing your licence.
The qualification must be an Emergency First Aid at Work qualification or equivalent.
The requirement for first aid training will improve your skills as an SIA licence holder. It will not change the obligations you have when responding to an emergency.
We accept other qualifications that comply with the relevant guidance from the Health and Safety Executive. Some examples are:
Your training provider can tell you more about this.
We expect applicants for a close protection licence to complete a first aid qualification at level 3 or above before taking their licence-linked training. Some examples are:
We accept other qualifications. Your training provider can tell you more about this.
You must have one of the following before you can apply for, or renew, a door supervisor or security guard licence:
This applies to any applications, including renewals.
You must have one of the following before you can apply for, or renew, a close protection licence:
This applies to any applications, including renewals.
If you hold a door supervisor licence you can choose one of the following options:
In either case, you must have an Emergency First Aid at Work qualification, or equivalent, before you can take the top-up training.
The security guard top-up training is shorter than the door supervisor top-up training, so is likely to be cheaper. However, you should consider the day-to-day duties of the job that you do. If your job involves guarding licensed premises (such as a pub or a club) you will need to renew your door supervisor licence.
If you hold a close protection licence you can choose one of the following options:
In either case, you must have the appropriate first aid qualification before you can take the top-up training.
We have moved some training to the ‘common unit’ that is taken by all security operatives except close protection operatives. This includes new training on:
We have introduced new sector-specific content – for example:
We have increased the number of practical elements in the training to help learners reinforce their knowledge. The practical assessments include:
Read Changes to SIA licence-linked training: your questions answered to find out more.
Gary McKee, a team leader at Sellafield Ltd has this week set out to beat his own record by running a phenomenal 110 consecutive marathons.
While racing, he’s raising much needed funds for Macmillan Cancer Support West Cumbria and West Cumbria Hospice at Home. The funds are more important than ever. Both charities have seen their income reduce since the coronavirus pandemic hit.
In 2017, Gary ran a superb 100 consecutive marathons on 100 consecutive days. Doing so he captured the attention of our employees, West Cumbrians and even the national media. Amongst other media appearances, he featured on Good Morning Britain with Piers Morgan.
Should he succeed in his latest challenge, he’ll complete his final run on 21 May 2021. At this point he’ll have managed a staggering 2884 miles. That’s the equivalent of running from his home town in West Cumbria to the foot of Italy.
Gary has already raised almost £12,000, and this figure is likely to rise rapidly as the marathons progress.
He said:
Covid has decimated fundraising opportunities and charities have never had it as tough.
I decided to run 110 marathons in 110 days due to Macmillan celebrating 110 years of existence this year and also to support Hospice at Home West Cumbria. They both provide fantastic support for local people.
Another Sellafield Ltd employee and colleague, Kevin Hetherington is running 55 of the marathons with Gary.
He said:
Gary invited me to support him during his challenge. I have never undertaken anything of this magnitude before so 55 marathons sounded like a great number to run, especially fitting it in between work commitments.
We’re following social distancing rules as it’s a different world at the minute and we need to be mindful of following the rules whilst exercising.
Amy Caddy, a work week manager is supporting Gary with his quest.
She said:
It’s an honour to be supporting Gary. What he’s doing is phenomenal, and the funds raised will make such a difference to the 2 charities.
I know Gary well, and wanted to do all I could to raise the profile of the challenge and help him raise as much money as possible. This will give Gary a much-needed boost.