Major training exercise puts our frontline officers and London’s emergency services to the test

All year round, we work hard behind the scenes to ensure all of our officers and staff are ready to respond to any type of attack, should the worst happen.

I lead the Met’s Protective Security Operations unit, responsible for delivering the policing function that helps protect London from potential terrorist threats.

Improving how we keep London’s communities safe is one of the commitments outlined in the “A New Met for London” plan.

And ensuring our response to major incidents - including terrorism - is as strong as possible is part of that.

We were fortunate enough to be allowed the use of The Glades shopping centre in Bromley for the exercise. This gave it a sense of realism and urgency for all those participating that is very difficult to replicate otherwise.

Around 250 officers, staff and volunteers from London’s emergency services - London Ambulance Service NHS Trust , London Fire Brigade , City of London Police and British Transport Police – worked together in response to the unfolding scenario.

Working with our local communities is also crucial to any policing activity and this exercise was no different. Staff from the Glades took part in the training, alongside dozens of members of the public and other volunteers who kindly gave up their time to act as shoppers caught up in the incident.

We worked with The Glades and others over several months planning it, and I want to extend my sincere gratitude and thanks to them for their support.

We’re now reviewing all the feedback from those involved. This will help us identify how we can improve, as well as what worked well and what learning we might be able to share with others.

All of this has been overseen by a fantastic team of officers and staff here in the Met, and we regularly practice our response to major incidents and terrorism scenarios throughout the year.

Another recent example was in January, when the team delivered another multi-agency exercise testing the emergency response to a fictional terror-related incident on board a passenger boat on the River Thames.

But as well as preparing to deal with the worst, we also have teams of specialist officers who work with hundreds of venues and businesses in communities across London to help protect against threats. They deliver counter terrorism training focused on ensuring that the safety and security of customers, visitors and staff is at the heart of their daily operations.

If you work for, or run a business in London and want to know how you can improve your security, a good first step is to access the ACT Awareness eLearning package.

Alternatively, email us to be put in touch with a Counter Terrorism Security Adviser (CTSA) - [email protected]