Expert in preventing and combating violence

“Why did you actually create your  Cut-Tex® PRO  Cut Resistant Fabric, and what was the actual reason behind it?” This is a question I have been asked so many times over the past few years. Well, I founded PPSS Group in November 2010 and right from the start we set a mission statement: “Protecting Frontline Professionals from Human Threat”. Our key objective was to reduce the risk of injuries and prevent the loss of life. It was a little later, on 13 March 2011 when my friend (and father of my three god daughters) Craig Wylde was brutally assaulted. Having previously served as Infantry soldier in the British Army, Craig ultimately became a prison officer at the Category A (high security) Frankland Prison, in Durham, England. One morning he opened a prisoner’s cell door… the prisoner had a broken glass bottle in his hand… he slashed Craig under his arm… he severed his artery, muscle, tendons, ligaments and created severe nerve damage. Days later glass bottles of any type became ille

Just the UK’s largest shopping centres alone attract hundreds of millions of visitors per year, some of which will even attract almost a million visitors in a single week. With so many people visiting shopping centres, there is clearly a massive potential for things to go wrong, hence it is important that steps are taken to make shopping centres a safe and secure environment for customers, visitors and employees at the same time. The best way to do so is with dedicated security professionals who are trained to handle a variety of potential situations that may arise within this unique environment. The type of risks, threats and challenges faced by those professionals can vary considerably and range from terrorism, assaults and abduction, theft, medical emergencies and first aid, fire and engineering hazards, the presence of hypodermic needles in toilets and anti-social behaviour, to name but a few. Knife attacks and other types of violence within shopping centres have made headlines

You cannot imagine how much it genuinely upsets me when I hear again and again that yet another security professional has purchased a used body armour . But please be honest with me, would you buy a used parachute that you didn’t know the history of, strap it onto your back, jump out of a plane and hope for the best? The fact of the matter is that a used body armour could have been stored inappropriately, it could have been ill-treated, or it could have simply passed its shelf life – meaning the raw materials being used have started to degrade. Never mind the fact that the previous owner might have suffered from an assault wearing the very same body armour, leaving the body armour structural damaged (often invisible to the human eye). Any of these issues could potentially lead to a major performance loss and can subsequently lead to the defeat of such body armour, which could subsequently lead to the loss of your life. The English saying ‘better safe than sorry’ makes more sens

This article is about my attempt to highlight the clear misconception that 'KNIFE injuries' automatically means 'STAB injuries', where in most cases most knife attacks in fact resulted in 'SLASH injuries'. This is of great significance, especially to those fighting knife crime and engaging with the threats we have recently seen in London and many other cities around the world. Let me start with one question: Why are so many terrorists and criminals turning to edged weapon? The U.S. publication ‘Law Enforcement Today’ published an article on 02 October 2019, titled: ‘FBI: More people killed with knives, hammers, clubs and even feet than rifles in 2018’. The FBI is making very clear that edged weapon represents a greater danger today than firearms. Over recent years we can clearly see a massive rise in the most violent type of knife attacks in countries around the world. In 2018, a prisoner on a day holiday stabbed two police officers, 14 people have reporte

Hypodermic needles pose a serious and realistic threat to domestic frontline professionals, such as private security, police, prison or civil enforcement officers and paramedics. Facing someone carrying any type of edged weapon can be classed as facing a ‘real problem’, but many of us will know someone who has been stabbed but who also has survived such assault. Unless you face someone who really know what he is doing, there is a realistic chance of surviving such type of assault. However, being attacked by random person, someone ‘unskilled’ waving a hypodermic needle at you and sticking it at anywhere into your body if of equal or even greater danger. This can indeed mean you are coming in contact with blood-borne pathogens such as HIV and Hepatitis C and this can potentially and subsequent result in you looking at the end of your life expectancy. In my personal and professional opinion this issue presents a realistic risk in today’s society. There are many recorded incidents of H

I was 18 years old when I carried my first knife, I was 19 years old when I first used a knife and I was 20 years old when I looked at the first dead human body, whose life was ended by another type of edged weapon… a broken bottle. Then, I guess, I ultimately arrived at that ‘T-junction’ in life where you either turn left and continue on your path, or you turn right and make significant changes in your life. The following two decades I spent learning and studying the use of knives and more importantly the defence from such weapon, and as part of this journey I ended up training hundreds of frontline professionals in understanding the precise risks and detailed physical aspects and consequences of an ‘edged weapon attack’. In 2009 I decided to set up PPSS Group , a dedicated company, engineering and supplying specialised PPE such as stab resistant body armour and s lash resistant clothing, with the aim to protect frontline professionals further from this specific threat. Now before