Choosing a fire and security company for an estate across Yorkshire, Lincolnshire and the Humber comes down to five checks: the scope of each company's certification, real coverage for every one of your postcodes, how it handles systems it didn't install, who does what when an alarm goes off, and whether its proposal can be compared line by line with others.
The useful comparison is not simply who installs alarms. It is who can support your particular buildings, maintain the systems already in place, provide usable records and agree clear responsibilities when something goes wrong. A company that suits a single Hull office may not offer the same arrangement for an estate stretching to Leeds, Lincoln and North Yorkshire.
Published by SPS Technical. This is a buyer's guide, not a ranking. Whoever you are considering, including SPS, confirm current approvals, scope and site coverage before appointing them.
1. Compare the scope of approval, not just the logos
BAFE explains that SP203-1 is modular: design, installation, commissioning and maintenance are separately identifiable activities. Check that the company is registered for the work you are buying. A fire alarm approval should not be assumed to cover fire risk assessments, extinguishers or emergency lighting; those have their own schemes.
For electronic security, check the company's current SSAIB or NSI listing and the specific systems it covers: intruder alarms, CCTV, access control or all three. NSI distinguishes NACOSS Gold from Systems Silver; both are routes to third-party approval, and Gold adds ISO 9001 quality-management requirements. A certificate for one discipline is not evidence of approval for every service listed on a website.
Keep these under separate headings in your supplier comparison:
- System certification: BAFE SP203-1 for fire alarms; SSAIB or NSI for security systems.
- Management systems: ISO 9001 and ISO 14001.
- Health and safety and supply-chain schemes: such as CHAS, SafeContractor or Constructionline.
- Memberships, manufacturer training and staff screening: useful, but not a substitute for system certification.
- Applications in progress or planned accreditations: not the same as a current approval.
Ask for current certificates, check them on the scheme's public register, and confirm which legal entity holds them.
2. Confirm coverage postcode by postcode
Start with a postcode schedule rather than a broad statement such as "covers Yorkshire". Ask each shortlisted company to confirm, in writing, support for every actual location in your portfolio, for example Hull, Grimsby, Scunthorpe, Lincoln, Doncaster, Sheffield, Leeds and York, including out-of-hours cover.
A published service area or a local office is a starting point for the conversation, not a commitment. Ask where the engineers who will cover each site are based and whether any sites would be subcontracted.
3. What should a multi-site maintenance proposal include?
Give each bidder the same estate information and ask for a comparable response. A useful planned maintenance proposal should make the following easy to understand:
- Estate and asset coverage: every building, postcode, system type and known manufacturer, including inherited equipment and access restrictions.
- The planned programme: the proposed visits, the standard each is based on, who arranges access and how missed or incomplete visits are recovered.
- Records and follow-up: example service reports, defect priorities, quotations, authorisation steps and evidence that agreed remedial work has been closed.
- Responsibility and support: a named account contact, out-of-hours arrangements, and the difference between telephone support, engineer attendance and security response.
- Comparable pricing: routine maintenance, monitoring, call-outs, labour, travel, parts, specialist access equipment and chargeable remedials shown separately, with exclusions and renewal terms.
A single agreement can cover several disciplines without forcing the same visit schedule onto every system. Ask the contractor to explain the requirements that apply to your equipment, for example BS 5839-1 for fire alarms and BS 9263 for intruder alarms, rather than applying a generic timetable.
4. Monitoring and response: ask who actually does what
Do not treat "24/7 support" as a complete service description. Ask who receives an alarm, who contacts you, who can send an engineer, and who can attend as a keyholder or security responder. Establish whether each of these is delivered by the contractor, another company in its group or a named monitoring or response partner.
Ask for written targets for acknowledgement, attendance and restoration, with any conditions attached. These are different measures. A regional office or a 24-hour telephone number does not by itself guarantee an arrival time at every site.
Monitoring arrangements do not replace a site's fire emergency procedures. Police response to monitored intruder alarms depends on the NPCC Police Requirements for Security Systems, and many fire and rescue services no longer attend automatic fire alarms at non-sleeping premises unless a fire is confirmed.
5. Taking over systems installed by another contractor
Changing maintenance provider does not necessarily mean replacing every system. Equally, no company should promise to accept all inherited equipment before understanding its condition and support requirements.
For a system takeover, ask the incoming contractor to review the equipment list, available documentation, engineer access codes, software or licence dependencies, outstanding defects and existing monitoring arrangements. The proposal should separate equipment that can stay in service from justified remedial work or replacement recommendations.
Agree the transition date, responsibility for open faults and the handover of service records. Any change to monitoring should have a documented transition plan. Taking on maintenance does not retrospectively certify that an inherited installation meets current standards.
6. Ask for evidence, not claims
Request references for comparable buildings and portfolios, not simply a large customer count. A sample service report, a clear mobilisation plan and a realistic service agreement will tell you more than an unsupported "fastest response" claim.
How SPS Technical approaches multi-site estates
SPS Technical is the fire and security systems division of SPS Security Ltd, with local engineers across Yorkshire, Lincolnshire and the Humber. We design, install, maintain and take over commercial fire alarms, CCTV, intruder alarms and access control.
Our accreditations page sets out our BAFE SP203-1 registration for fire alarm design, installation, commissioning and maintenance, SSAIB certification for intruder alarms, CCTV and access control, ISO 9001 and ISO 14001, CHAS and SafeContractor. The certificate holder is SPS Security Ltd.
For multi-site estates, we offer a single regional maintenance relationship across system types, with takeovers of existing systems where suitable. Monitoring and keyholding and mobile response through SPS Security can be added and are specified separately, so it is always clear which sites and systems are covered.
To discuss consolidating your fire and security maintenance, request a multi-site portfolio review. Share your site list, current contracts, renewal dates and what you know about each system, and we will talk through maintenance, takeovers and monitoring for the buildings you actually operate.
Frequently asked questions
Can one contractor maintain fire alarms, CCTV, intruder alarms and access control?
Yes, many offer a combined agreement. Check the certification scope for each discipline, the equipment the contractor can support and any specialist partners involved. One invoice should not hide who is responsible for each part of the service.
Does a local office prove a company can support every site in Lincolnshire or Yorkshire?
No. Ask for postcode-level coverage, out-of-hours arrangements and written attendance targets. A published service area is a starting point, not a commitment covering your estate.
Does SIA approval also cover fire alarm installation?
No. SIA approved-contractor status covers security services such as guarding and keyholding. Fire alarm competence and certification need to be checked separately; for BAFE SP203-1, check the modules the company is registered for.
Does NSI Silver mean the same as NSI Gold?
No. NSI offers Systems Silver and NACOSS Gold for electronic security companies. Gold includes ISO 9001 quality-management requirements. In either case, check the approved system scope rather than assuming the level covers every discipline.
Can we move maintenance without replacing our existing systems?
Often, yes. Ask for a takeover assessment before committing. It depends on equipment condition, access codes, support and compatibility, with any remedial work and monitoring transition agreed in advance.