Press release

SIA grants available for UK charities and community groups using cash confiscated from criminals

The Security Industry Authority has announced the opening of its grant for good causes fund for 2023 to 2024.

The Security Industry Authority has announced the opening of its grant for good causes fund for 2023 to 2024. Registered charities and community interest companies in the UK have until Sunday 18 February 2024 at 11:59pm to apply for funding. Eligible organisations must show how a grant will benefit the UK private security industry and/or support public safety.

Through the fund, the UK’s private security industry regulator distributes money recovered through proceeds of crime confiscation orders to good causes in the UK. Since 2019, the SIA has awarded nearly £180,000 to organisations including Young Enterprise, The EY Foundation and The Prince’s Trust.

Confiscating ill-gotten cash helps to deter others from committing crime, makes sure that people do not financially benefit from criminal acts, and makes it harder for convicted criminals to come back into the private security industry.

Ronnie Megaughin, Head of Compliance and Inspections at the Security Industry Authority, said:

I’m delighted to announce the opening of the SIA grant for good causes fund for this financial year. I encourage eligible registered charities and community interest companies in the UK to apply before the deadline.

We believe that crime should not pay. It’s fitting that the illegally acquired money we recover through confiscation orders is used for good, to benefit the wider private security industry and help to protect the public.

More information about how to apply is on the SIA grant for good causes page on GOV.UK.

Press office

For media enquiries only, please contact media.enquiries@sia.gov.uk.

Notes to editors

About the Proceeds of Crime Act

The Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 (POCA) enables the SIA to investigate the financial activity of people who have committed a criminal offence and confiscate the proceeds of crime through a court-issued confiscation order. The SIA has been a designated body under POCA since 2015.

The SIA receives a portion of the money it recovers through confiscation orders under the Asset Recovery Incentivisation Scheme (ARIS). This money can only be used to fund its financial investigation capability or distributed to good causes.

About the SIA grant for good causes fund

Organisations can apply for a grant if they are a registered charity or community interest company (CIC) and can clearly show how they will benefit the UK private security industry and/or support public safety.

All the information needed to make an application is available on the SIA grants for good causes page on GOV.UK. Applications close at 11:59pm on Sunday 18 February 2024.

There is no guarantee that the organisations which apply will get funding. The SIA will inform successful applicants about its decision by 22 March 2024.

Further information

The Security Industry Authority is the regulator of the UK’s private security industry. Our purpose is to protect the public through effective regulation of the private security industry and working with partners to raise standards across the sector. We are responsible for licensing people who do certain jobs in the private security industry and for approving private security companies who wish to be part of the voluntary ‘Approved Contractor Scheme’. We are marking 20 years since we were set up in 2003 and issued the first SIA licences in April 2004.

The SIA is an executive non-departmental public body, sponsored by the Home Office. For more information, visit www.gov.uk/sia.

You can also find us on LinkedIn @Security Industry Authority, Facebook @theSIAUK, YouTube @TheSIAUK and X (formerly known as Twitter) @SIAuk.

Updates to this page

Published 29 January 2024