{"id":13698,"date":"2024-08-05T06:29:00","date_gmt":"2024-08-05T05:29:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/?p=13698"},"modified":"2024-07-03T13:43:25","modified_gmt":"2024-07-03T12:43:25","slug":"focus-on-a-security-officer-dave-aston","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/security-careers\/focus-on-a-security-officer-dave-aston\/","title":{"rendered":"Focus on a Security Officer  Dave Aston"},"content":{"rendered":"<h1 style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong>Focus on a Security Officer <\/strong><strong>Dave Aston<\/strong><\/h1>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It was a pleasant stroll on a hot day from Embankment Station to Pall Mall for City Security magazine\u2019s Graham Bassett when he met with David Aston, Senior Supervisor Front of House for Portal Security, at a classically hi-spec newly refurbished 70,000 sq. ft multi-tenanted building.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It is often said it is the journey that counts, but the destination in this case was special: the minute you walked into the foyer area, it oozed luxury refinement, followed by a warm and professional welcome.<\/p>\n<h4 style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong>How did you initially get into the security profession?<\/strong><\/h4>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\">I served in the Royal Navy at their submarine base in Scotland for ten years before I moved into retail security and subsequently corporate security sixteen years ago.<\/p>\n<h4 style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong>What does your job entail and what is the best thing about it?<\/strong><\/h4>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Ensuring everyone in the building is safe, the building is secure and all as it should be \u2013 and, of course, helping visitors and tenants accordingly. I enjoy sharing my knowledge, supporting my colleagues, and seeing them progress and do well.<\/p>\n<h4 style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong>What has been the highlight of your career in security?<\/strong><\/h4>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\">When I was working at Lambeth Palace a Lord visited and, on his way out, he made a point of stopping to speak with me and compliment me on how I had greeted him\/processed his arrival \u2013 I was just doing my job, but his feedback made what I do even more worthwhile.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\">On another occasion, a well-known TV celebrity was visiting my place of work. He stopped to speak with me, not knowing my wife is a huge fan, plus it also happened to be her birthday; he then said, \u201cCan I call your wife to wish her happy birthday?\u201d (which he did).<\/p>\n<h4 style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong>What skills do you believe are important for the security role?<\/strong><\/h4>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Having the ability to listen and communicate\/engage with people; being able to think ahead and be proactive; having good observation skills. If something does not look right, no matter how small, action and follow up. Show an interest in where you are working, ask questions, learn good practice from others and progress.<\/p>\n<h4 style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong>How does technology support the security role?<\/strong><\/h4>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Technology is an important contributing factor in today\u2019s blended security provision, which enables us to provide a better overall service to the client, staff, and visitors.<\/p>\n<h4 style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong>What advice would you give to someone wanting to get into security?<\/strong><\/h4>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Firstly, be yourself and be honest: integrity is fundamental. Have a passion to do your best, learn and help others along the way, with a positive \u2018can do\u2019 attitude.<\/p>\n<h4 style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong>How has your role changed over the time you have been doing it?<\/strong><\/h4>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\">For me, the biggest change has been from chasing shoplifters in retail to working in a corporate environment. Another big change I have seen over the years is people\u2019s attitude towards security: I believe it is now seen as a profession, rather than being viewed in a less positive light. Also, the day-to-day role has changed with the advent of technology, along with clients, who have an expectation of a more customer service-focused approach, which is essential today.<\/p>\n<h4 style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong>How would you like to progress in your role.<\/strong><\/h4>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\">I would like to progress to the next level and be able to help\/train others, as I have done in other positions and in the Navy.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Speaking with Dave, it is evident he is a great ambassador for the business and well thought of by the client and Portal Director, Adrian Moore: \u201cDave Aston is an exceptional Front of House Officer. His customer service, friendly demeanour, and attention to detail, make him an invaluable asset to our client and Portal Security. Whilst new to us, in a short space of time, Dave has quickly become the face of the building and we are delighted to have him in our team.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Focus on a Security Officer Dave Aston It was a pleasant stroll on a&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":37,"featured_media":13725,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[2,49],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-13698","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-editors-choice","category-security-careers"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v25.0 (Yoast SEO v25.2) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Focus on a Security Officer Dave Aston - City Security Magazine<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/security-careers\/focus-on-a-security-officer-dave-aston\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_GB\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Focus on a Security Officer Dave Aston\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Focus on a Security Officer Dave Aston It was a pleasant stroll on a hot day from Embankment Station to Pall Mall for City Security magazine\u2019s Graham\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/security-careers\/focus-on-a-security-officer-dave-aston\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"City Security Magazine\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2024-08-05T05:29:00+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/92.p23-DaveAston.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"750\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"500\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Graham Bassett\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@CitySecuritymag\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@CitySecuritymag\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Graham Bassett\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Estimated reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/security-careers\/focus-on-a-security-officer-dave-aston\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/security-careers\/focus-on-a-security-officer-dave-aston\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Graham Bassett\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/#\/schema\/person\/42cd074b7dc948a632dbb222d0588c62\"},\"headline\":\"Focus on a Security Officer Dave Aston\",\"datePublished\":\"2024-08-05T05:29:00+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/security-careers\/focus-on-a-security-officer-dave-aston\/\"},\"wordCount\":652,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/security-careers\/focus-on-a-security-officer-dave-aston\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/92.p23-DaveAston.jpg\",\"articleSection\":[\"Editor's Choice\",\"Security Careers\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/security-careers\/focus-on-a-security-officer-dave-aston\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/security-careers\/focus-on-a-security-officer-dave-aston\/\",\"name\":\"Focus on a Security Officer Dave Aston - City Security Magazine\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/security-careers\/focus-on-a-security-officer-dave-aston\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/security-careers\/focus-on-a-security-officer-dave-aston\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/92.p23-DaveAston.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2024-08-05T05:29:00+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/security-careers\/focus-on-a-security-officer-dave-aston\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/security-careers\/focus-on-a-security-officer-dave-aston\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/security-careers\/focus-on-a-security-officer-dave-aston\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/92.p23-DaveAston.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/92.p23-DaveAston.jpg\",\"width\":750,\"height\":500},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/security-careers\/focus-on-a-security-officer-dave-aston\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Focus on a Security Officer Dave Aston\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/\",\"name\":\"City Security Magazine\",\"description\":\"News and advice for security professionals\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/#organization\",\"name\":\"City Security Magazine\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/06\/header-logo-2.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/06\/header-logo-2.jpg\",\"width\":2048,\"height\":573,\"caption\":\"City Security Magazine\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/x.com\/CitySecuritymag\",\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/company\/city-security-magazine\"]},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/#\/schema\/person\/42cd074b7dc948a632dbb222d0588c62\",\"name\":\"Graham Bassett\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/GB-on-BAT-Terracce-v3-125x125.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/GB-on-BAT-Terracce-v3-125x125.jpg\",\"caption\":\"Graham Bassett\"},\"description\":\"Graham is involved in many volunteer aspects within the security community to include:- Committee Member of the City of London Crime Prevention Association , Vice Chairman of ASIS UK &amp; member of the European Advisory Council, Trustee of the City of London Police Children\u2019s Charity, Liveryman of the WCoSP, plus he is MD of GBRUK and Co-Founder of AllSecurityEvents.com\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/author\/graham-bassett\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Focus on a Security Officer Dave Aston - City Security Magazine","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/security-careers\/focus-on-a-security-officer-dave-aston\/","og_locale":"en_GB","og_type":"article","og_title":"Focus on a Security Officer Dave Aston","og_description":"Focus on a Security Officer Dave Aston It was a pleasant stroll on a hot day from Embankment Station to Pall Mall for City Security magazine\u2019s Graham","og_url":"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/security-careers\/focus-on-a-security-officer-dave-aston\/","og_site_name":"City Security Magazine","article_published_time":"2024-08-05T05:29:00+00:00","og_image":[{"width":750,"height":500,"url":"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/92.p23-DaveAston.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Graham Bassett","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@CitySecuritymag","twitter_site":"@CitySecuritymag","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Graham Bassett","Estimated reading time":"4 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/security-careers\/focus-on-a-security-officer-dave-aston\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/security-careers\/focus-on-a-security-officer-dave-aston\/"},"author":{"name":"Graham Bassett","@id":"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/#\/schema\/person\/42cd074b7dc948a632dbb222d0588c62"},"headline":"Focus on a Security Officer Dave Aston","datePublished":"2024-08-05T05:29:00+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/security-careers\/focus-on-a-security-officer-dave-aston\/"},"wordCount":652,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/security-careers\/focus-on-a-security-officer-dave-aston\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/92.p23-DaveAston.jpg","articleSection":["Editor's Choice","Security Careers"],"inLanguage":"en-GB"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/security-careers\/focus-on-a-security-officer-dave-aston\/","url":"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/security-careers\/focus-on-a-security-officer-dave-aston\/","name":"Focus on a Security Officer Dave Aston - City Security Magazine","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/security-careers\/focus-on-a-security-officer-dave-aston\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/security-careers\/focus-on-a-security-officer-dave-aston\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/92.p23-DaveAston.jpg","datePublished":"2024-08-05T05:29:00+00:00","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/security-careers\/focus-on-a-security-officer-dave-aston\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-GB","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/security-careers\/focus-on-a-security-officer-dave-aston\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-GB","@id":"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/security-careers\/focus-on-a-security-officer-dave-aston\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/92.p23-DaveAston.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/92.p23-DaveAston.jpg","width":750,"height":500},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/security-careers\/focus-on-a-security-officer-dave-aston\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Focus on a Security Officer Dave Aston"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/","name":"City Security Magazine","description":"News and advice for security professionals","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-GB"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/#organization","name":"City Security Magazine","url":"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-GB","@id":"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/06\/header-logo-2.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/06\/header-logo-2.jpg","width":2048,"height":573,"caption":"City Security Magazine"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/x.com\/CitySecuritymag","https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/company\/city-security-magazine"]},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/#\/schema\/person\/42cd074b7dc948a632dbb222d0588c62","name":"Graham Bassett","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-GB","@id":"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/GB-on-BAT-Terracce-v3-125x125.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/GB-on-BAT-Terracce-v3-125x125.jpg","caption":"Graham Bassett"},"description":"Graham is involved in many volunteer aspects within the security community to include:- Committee Member of the City of London Crime Prevention Association , Vice Chairman of ASIS UK &amp; member of the European Advisory Council, Trustee of the City of London Police Children\u2019s Charity, Liveryman of the WCoSP, plus he is MD of GBRUK and Co-Founder of AllSecurityEvents.com","url":"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/author\/graham-bassett\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13698","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/37"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=13698"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13698\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":13726,"href":"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13698\/revisions\/13726"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/13725"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=13698"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=13698"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/citysecuritymagazine.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=13698"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}