Employer-led initiative will define the competence framework requirements for surveying and design roles, creating the career pathway and standard against which FESS sector competence can be assessed.
The FESS UK Employer Groups Forum has announced the formation of a new UK FESS Surveying and Design Working Group, a UK-wide initiative to set the FESS Sector competence standard for professionals responsible for surveying and designing fire and security systems.
Bringing together employer expertise from across all four devolved UK nations, the group will identify and define the skills, knowledge, experience and behaviours (SKEB) required for these critical roles—from those entering the sector through to experienced designers and specialist consultants.
The work is intended to extend the evolving FESS Routes to Competence framework to cover surveying and design of both Fire and Security systems, by setting the FESS standard enabling individuals to demonstrate their competence. Its findings are also expected to inform subsequent review and updating of the relevant associated National Occupational Standards (NOS) for the FESS Sector.
An employer-led commitment to competence
Trevor Jenks, Chair of the FESS UK Employer Groups Forum and FESS sector lead for SLG10.2, welcomed the initiative:
“The Forum brings together employers from across the UK fire and security industry with a shared commitment to raising standards of competence. Surveying and design are critical stages in the delivery of effective systems. This working group is an important next step towards defining what professionals in these roles the skills, knowledge, experience and behaviors, needed to demonstrate sector competence and define the routes to competence. I am delighted that Dennis Roe has accepted the chair of this working group where he brings a wealth of experience and expertise.
— Trevor Jenks, Chair, FESS UK Employer Groups Forum
Dennis Roe appointed to chair the working group
The Forum has appointed Dennis Roe RISC, Director of the Association of Security Consultants (ASC) and doctoral researcher at the University of Portsmouth, as Chair of the new group. His background combines more than three decades of security engineering and consultancy with independent FESS technical assessment, national standards activity and research into surveying and design competence.
“I’m grateful to Trevor and the FESS UK Employer Groups Forum for the confidence they have placed in me, and I am determined to give this important initiative my full commitment.
Surveying and design are where many of the most critical decisions about risk, capability and system effectiveness are made. Even the best installation and maintenance cannot necessarily compensate for a system that was inadequately assessed or incorrectly designed in the first place.
My ambition is to help establish a credible, measurable and demonstrable competence standard, defining the FESS Sector routes to competency pathways and lasting benefits for practitioners, employers and, ultimately, the people who depend on the systems we design.”
— Dennis Roe RISC, Chair, FESS UK Surveying and Design Working Group
FESS UK Surveying and Design working group launch.
Details of the working group will be announced at the Association of Security Consultants (ASC) premier annual conference, ConSeC 26, to be held on the 29th of October 2026 at Hinxton Hall, Cambridge. Its work will bring together employer perspectives and relevant specialist expertise to examine competence requirements across the full surveying and design pathway.
