Practitioner viewpoint - September 2025

DO YOU  remember where you were on the morning of 7 July 2005?  It was the morning when terrorist bombs devastated London’s transport network, and I was working in Westminster at the time. I will never forget the sound of so many emergency vehicle sirens, or the fear of being stuck in London with the transport system and mobile network locked down – unable to get home or to communicate with loved ones, and not knowing whether there would be more attacks.  

Some 52 people lost their lives on that day, over 700 were physically injured, but far more suffered long term impact to their mental wellbeing as a result of the attacks, including many of the emergency responders who put their personal considerations aside and unquestioningly stepped in to help those affected.

It was one of the most significant acts of terrorism on UK soil, and the subsequent reviews have driven change at national, regional, and local level, as well as within individual businesses and locations. Of course the focus has been on reducing the likelihood of a recurrence, but are we really any safer today that we were before 7/7?

One of the problems is that the nature of the threat evolves far more quickly than control frameworks can. There’s also a need to balance protection against freedom. The objective of terrorism is to disrupt the normal operation of society, so if the control measures become excessively restrictive then the terrorists effectively achieve their objectives indirectly, even without undertaking further attacks.

So how can we maintain the balance and have the freedom to live our lives and run our businesses, whilst still managing the risk of a terrorist attack?

The Government tell us that the terrorist threat in the UK is currently most likely to be from lone actors rather than from organised groups.  This sort of threat is much harder for the security authorities to identify, track and mitigate.

So how can we stay safe? I think the answer lies with each and every one of us.

Many of you will be familiar with the announcement that runs across the UK transport network every few minutes “if you see something that doesn’t look right tell a member of staff or text the British Transport Police on 61016 – see it say it sorted”

But in today’s world we spend so much time in our own bubble – focussed on our smart phones, watching or listening to online media, that we don’t pay much attention to what’s going on around us, and are therefore unlikely to notice something out of place, or someone behaving suspiciously.  Even if we do notice something odd, how many of us would be willing to speak up? And how many would walk on by and assume that someone else will deal with it?

I think that personal responsibility is key to keeping ourselves and our society safe. I think we all need to pay a little bit more attention to what’s going on around us, and be willing to step in or speak up if we notice something out of place or of concern. This will help to mitigate the ongoing threat from terrorism, but will also counter crime and antisocial behaviour in public places too.

It’s easy to look back at events such as 7/7 and highlight all the things that should have been done better.  It’s easy to praise the heroic work of emergency responders, to morn those who lost their lives, and to empathise with those who’s lives will never be the same.  

But it’s far more effective to take positive action to honour those people. Simply taking the time and making the effort to notice what’s going on around us, and to speak up when something doesn’t look right, can make a real difference.  

Let’s become a nation of everyday heroes, by committing to protect each other from hostile actors simply by being present, attentive and willing to take action when something looks suspicious.

See it, say it, sorted!

Louise Ward is group director ESG and projects at Freightliner Group. For more information, visit www.freightliner.co.uk