AUCSO Chair recognised with prestigious award
James Thorpe
Share this content
Figureheads from AUCSO (The Association of University Chief Security Officers) have recently commented on their Chair’s prestigious award win in Dubai in January 2023.
Les Allan was recognised with the Intersec Awards’ International Leader of the Year prize at a prestigious ceremony at the Ritz Carlton, DIFC.
This is the first time the award has been won by an individual in the education security sector and will no doubt be a beacon in showcasing the work undertaken by AUCSO members on a global scale.
Oliver Curran, Vice-Chair, AUCSO said: “One of Les’ key objectives as Chair of AUCSO was to break down silo thinking and embrace collaborations and mutual aid support with the wider security industry worldwide – we certainly feel Les has successfully achieved this.
“Les’ true strengths lie within his capacity as an experienced leader to develop new approaches to modernise security and safety by breaking down barriers to collaborative thinking and using his influence to support new initiatives and strategic alliances.
“His leadership is a clear indication of what can be achieved when experience and knowledge is shared to encourage the next generation of security leaders.”
During his time as Chair at AUCSO, Les has created strategic alliances and signed Memorandums of Understanding with the following organisations: The Institute of Strategic Risk Management, The Higher Education Business Continuity Network, The Campus Protection Society of Southern Africa, The International Foundation for Protection Officers and The National Association for Healthcare Security.
He is an IFPO and NAHS Board member and is also a member of the Scottish Government PREVENT Group and the Edinburgh Resilience Forum, supporting strategies for major incident responses.
Julie Barker, COO, AUCSO added: “Les is so deserving of this prestigious award as he works tirelessly dedicating his own time to his role as Chairman of AUCSO. He frequently uses his annual leave to attend conferences as a speaker and attend strategy meetings worldwide.”
Allan also commented: “I am absolutely delighted to receive such a prestigious award; I am very grateful for this and for all the wonderful support I have received from all my friends and AUCSO colleagues and the wider security industry.
“I see this as not only an award for me personally but also for recognition of AUCSO and Tertiary Education Security worldwide as significant contributors to global security”.
