Working together to protect crowded places

The UK faces a high level of threat from international terrorism, and an attack could take place without warning. The threat level to the UK is currently assessed by the Joint Terrorism Analysis Centre (JTAC) to be “Severe”, meaning that a terrorist attack is highly likely. Crowded places remain an attractive target for international terrorists, who have demonstrated that they are likely to target places which are easily accessible, regularly available and which offer the prospect for an impact beyond the loss of life alone (for example serious disruption, or a particular economic/ political impact). The Government wants to ensure that the right levels of protective security are in place that are proportionate to the risk so that if a terrorist attack does take place any loss of life or serious injury are minimised. That is why it is undertaking a public consultation about the contents of this draft guidance. This guide aims to help local partners, including businesses, understand their roles and the contributions they can make to reducing the vulnerability of crowded places to terrorist attack. It: i) provides advice about how risk will be assessed and local performance managed; and ii) explains the roles of key partners in delivering reductions in the vulnerabilities of crowded places to terrorist attack