Northern Ireland Security Guard Service

The Northern Ireland Security Guard Service (NISGS) is a civilian organisation of the Ministry of Defence that provides armed security at military establishments in Northern Ireland.

It was founded in 1998 following the Good Friday Agreement and is a unionised, non-industrial civilian security guard organisation under the authority of the General Officer Commanding (Northern Ireland), who holds ultimate responsibility for the operation of the organisation. The NISGS works alongside the unarmed Ministry of Defence Guard Service (MGS).

In the rest of the United Kingdom, armed security is the responsibility of the Military Provost Guard Service, made up of service personnel.

An NISGS Civilian Security Officer (CSO) is attested by a magistrate as a Special Constable whilst on duty within Ministry of Defence property. They hold similar powers to that of a Police Constable based on the Emergency Laws (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1947. A CSO has the powers of arrest under the Police and Criminal Evidence (Northern Ireland) Order 1989 (PACE).

In 2009 CSOs at Massereene Barracks were criticised for not opening fire during an incident in which two British soldiers were killed when the barracks was attacked by members of the Irish republican paramilitary group, the Real IRA who were armed with AKM automatic rifles. However the actions of the CSOs were praised by Brigadier George Norton, the Army's most senior soldier in Northern Ireland at the time. This was the first time that a barracks guarded by the NISGS had come under a direct attack.

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