If you’re thinking about getting your SIA licence and working in security, there’s a good chance you’ll end up doing night shifts. It’s just the reality of the industry. Whilst everyone else is tucked up in bed, you’ll be the one keeping watch over offices, construction sites, retail parks, or whatever site you’re assigned to.
The thing is, nobody really prepares you for what working nights actually feels like. The training courses cover everything you need to know about conflict management, health and safety, and your legal powers, but they don’t tell you how strange it is to have breakfast at 7pm or how you’ll need to explain to your mates why you can’t make it to the pub on a Saturday night.
Your body clock will hate you (at first)
Let’s be honest about this one. The first few weeks of night shifts are rough. Your body is hardwired to sleep when it’s dark, and you’re asking it to do the complete opposite. You’ll find yourself wide awake at 3am when you’re actually supposed to be working, then absolutely shattered when you get home at 7am and the rest of the world is just getting started.
Some people never really adjust, but most do eventually. The trick is consistency. If you’re on nights, you need to commit to it fully. Blackout curtains become your best friend. So does saying no to daytime plans, even when you’ve technically got the day off. Your family might not understand why you’re asleep at 2pm, but stick to your routine and it does get easier.
The quiet hours are both the best and worst part
There’s something quite peaceful about patrolling an empty building at 2am. No traffic noise, no people bothering you, just you and your thoughts. Some guards love this. It gives them time to think, to listen to podcasts, or just enjoy a bit of solitude that’s impossible to find during the day.
But that same quiet can also mess with your head. When you’re tired and it’s the dead of night, every little sound seems louder. That creaking pipe sounds like an intruder. The wind rattling a door can get your heart racing. You learn pretty quickly which noises are normal and which ones actually need investigating, but it takes time.
And then there are the properly quiet sites where nothing happens for hours on end. Staying alert when absolutely nothing is going on is harder than you’d think. This is where the professionalism comes in. Anyone can stay focused when something exciting is happening, but it takes discipline to remain vigilant during hour six of an uneventful shift.
You’ll see a side of society most people don’t
Night shifts put you in contact with a whole range of people that the average person never encounters. You’ll meet other night workers, obviously – the cleaners, the delivery drivers, the NHS staff coming off shift. There’s a sort of unspoken camaraderie among people who work whilst everyone else sleeps.
But you’ll also deal with the less savoury side of things. Drunks trying to find their way home. People who are rough sleeping and looking for somewhere warm. The occasional person who’s clearly up to no good. Your training will give you the skills to handle these situations, but actually experiencing them is different from role-playing in a classroom.
You learn to read people very quickly in this job. You develop an instinct for who’s just lost and confused versus who might be a problem. It’s not something they can really teach you; it comes from experience.
The social life sacrifice is real
This is probably the hardest part for most people, especially if you’re young and your mates are all working normal hours. You can’t just pop out for a quick drink after work because ‘after work’ is 6am. Weekend plans become complicated because you’re either sleeping through Saturday afternoon or you’re knackered from trying to flip your sleep schedule.
Relationships can be tricky too. If you’ve got a partner who works days, you’ll be like ships passing in the night – sometimes literally. Family events, birthdays, christenings – you’ll miss some of them, or you’ll turn up looking like death warmed over because you’ve been awake for 20 hours.
But here’s the flip side: you get to do your shopping when the supermarket is empty, you never sit in traffic, and you can sort out life admin whilst everyone else is at work. Cinema tickets are cheaper during the day. The gym is quiet. There are perks, even if they don’t make up for missing your nephew’s birthday party.
The money can be decent
Night shifts typically pay better than day shifts, which is something to consider when you’re looking at positions. That shift allowance can make a real difference to your take-home pay. For some people, this is why they specifically choose to work nights – the extra money makes the antisocial hours worthwhile.
If you’re supporting a family or trying to save up for something, that premium can be the difference between just getting by and actually getting ahead. Just make sure you’re not spending it all on takeaways because you’re too tired to cook.
It’s not for everyone, and that’s fine
Some people take to night work like a duck to water. Others give it a few months and realise it’s absolutely not for them. There’s no shame in either outcome. The security industry needs people working all hours, so if nights aren’t your thing, there are plenty of day positions out there too.
But if you’re about to start your SIA training and you’re wondering what night shifts might be like, just know that it’s an adjustment. It’s not easy, and anyone who tells you otherwise is probably lying. Your first few months will be tough whilst you find your rhythm and work out how to balance sleep, work, and having some sort of life outside of both.
The good news is that it does get easier. You develop strategies that work for you. You find your tribe among other night workers who understand the unique challenges. And you might even come to enjoy aspects of it – the autonomy, the quiet, the feeling that you’re part of the small group of people who keep things running whilst everyone else sleeps.
Just invest in those blackout curtains early on. Trust me on that one.
