12 April 2026
How to choose a security company in the West Midlands
Most security websites sound the same. They are local, they are professional, and they are available 24 hours. None of that tells you whether the officer who turns up on Monday will know which door is yours. If you are appointing a security company in the West Midlands, the useful work happens before the uniform arrives.
Start with the site, not the slogan. Write down the address, the hours people are actually there, the doors that matter, and what has gone wrong before. A shop losing stock on Saturday afternoon does not need the same purchase as a warehouse that is locked at six. If a company quotes you without asking for those facts, you are buying a price list.
Ask who carries a licence. In the UK, licensable security activities require the individual officer to hold the appropriate SIA licence. That is separate from a company calling itself an approved contractor. Professional Security Services Ltd does not claim SIA Approved Contractor or ACS status. You should still ask any supplier which licence type the post needs, and you should expect a straight answer.
Ask where the company is based, and whether the town on the website is an office or a coverage claim. We are based at 1A Small Street, Walsall. We cover Birmingham, the Black Country and the towns listed on our locations pages from that office. A page about a town is not a branch. Any honest firm should be able to say the same thing clearly.
Ask what you will receive after a shift. A sentence that says “all in order” is not a report if a shutter was damaged. You want to know what was checked and what was found. For mobile patrols, ask how the route varies. For key holding, ask how keys are logged and what the officer does when an alarm is going and the building does not look safe to enter. Be wary of any supplier that advertises a minute-perfect response time for every postcode. Distance is real.
Split manned guarding from technology. Some firms sell cameras, monitoring and guards as one bundle. We provide people: officers, patrols, concierge posts and key holding. We do not install CCTV. If you already have cameras or an alarm, a good officer uses your procedure. They do not need to pretend they built the system.
Finally, speak to the person who will deal with you when the shift is wrong. Our office number is 07565 546554, Monday to Friday 9am to 6pm and Saturday 9am to 4pm. Operational cover outside those hours is something we agree in the assignment. It is not the same as the office desk being open. If you want a quote, send the address and the job. We will tell you if we are the wrong shape of company for it.