DN reviews: criminals and uneducated PDV trains teachers

In the middle of the attack, when people hid at the Risbergska school, the head of school in Hällefors municipality was called by a security company that wanted to sell an alarm system.

– I hung up. We are located in Örebro County and were fully investigated if we had students at the affected school, says head of school Tina Lanefjord.

Since the mass shooting on February 4, some 40 companies have raised the country’s schools to sell PDV training or various protection, DN’s survey shows among Swedish municipalities.

« The municipality of Köping has been contacted by about 25 sellers from different companies, » answers security coordinator Pernilla Englund.

« Yes! Yes! Yes! Can’t even start line up everyone who has been in contact, » writes Catarina Higgins, school and cultural manager in Gullspång.

Fredrik Hemmensjö was Until recently principal at Malmö Latin School, where two teachers were murdered by a student in 2022. He sees a substantial investment from the security companies.

– Where you try to go on the need that has arisen. It accelerated after Örebro. I get e-mails from security companies that want to sell everything from walkie-talkies to courses.

The pressure also comes from troubled parents and teachers who demand that schools have to do something, and from the government that now wants it to be Mandatory to practice before the act of violence.

Still, anyone can train in PDV. There are no competence requirements, no quality control or supervision, DN’s review shows.

Also the concept of PDV is unprotected. Therefore, the person who buys a PDV education can have a false security. This is stated by Petter Säterhed, responsible for the area of ​​security in the public environment at the Swedish Agency for Social Protection and Emergency Preparedness, MSB.

– Or that it does damage and scares the staff so they are rather scared than prepared.

It is also about tax money. The municipalities pay large sums to the security companies. Account plans from some of Sweden’s municipalities that DN has taken part in show that this is several hundred thousand SEK up to millions, annually.

PDV stands for ongoing fatal violence and is really a police concept, a tactic for how the police should stop a school shooter or terrorist.

After several violent attacks at Swedish schools, security companies borrowed the concept and began to sell self-made PDV training to completely different occupational groups that neither wear uniform nor weapons: teachers and principals.

Several municipalities testify in DN’s survey of questionable quality, high costs and questions whether the benefit justifies the cost:

« Our requirement specification to educators is high and many offers do not reach halfway. Many want to take the opportunity to make money from this, » replies Ingvar Åkesson, security coordinator at Båstad Municipality.

DN has mapped the companies Who watches Swedish schools after the Örebrodåd.

It’s everything from one -man companies to large security companies. Some have a lot of real -life exercises and use pretend blood, weapons and a dressed perpetrator chasing the teachers, who will fight for their lives.

« You will be stressed. Enormously stressed. A couple cried at the first pass today. Second perhaps hysterical, » explained a security consultant, a former police officer, when the magazine high school made reports.

Despite this, there are no requirements for the consultants’ own educational background. Some only have high school competence. Some point out that they have worked as a security guard, within the police or the rescue service – or have been engaged in martial arts. Others state that they have taken private security courses abroad.

Among the educators are People who have been fired, classified as security risks, or are convicted of crime.

For example, a man was granted his permission to work in the guarding industry because he no longer met the requirements for legal obedience, reliability and suitability, according to government decisions. His security class placement was withdrawn as a result of information that the security police have about him. Nevertheless, through his own security company, he was able to educate a municipal school in Central Sweden earlier this year. Now more municipalities are planning to sign an agreement with him, according to DN’s survey.

Another man worked as a police officer but was convicted of data breach. He resigned before the verdict was announced and started a security company. Now PDV-educates schools.

The PDV trainers use Titles that lack formal competence requirements – or not even exist. For example, they call themselves a school safety specialist or security trained specialist.

– Security trained specialist, yes, what is it? It is important that it is clear what you are specially trained in, says Jeanette Lesslie Wikström, CEO of the industry organization Security Industry.

The company SSK Security Academy PDV educates schools and calls itself the market leader. In collaboration with Folkuniversitetet in Uppsala, the company has started an education for something they call a certified school safety coordinator.

« We have found that, » says Hansi Stafbom, founder of the SSK Security Academy.

Also home -made certificates used. In Gothenburg there is Black Rhino AB, whose chairman is the rewritten entrepreneur Jon Strand who has spoken out about his background in a sect and recorded podd with the heading « From Jehovah’s Witnesses to Billionaire ». The company issues so-called PDV certificates to show that their participants have been given the knowledge to cope with life-threatening crises.

But according to Jeanette Lesslie Wikström at the industry organization the security industry, there are no certificates called so.

She points out that many companies are serious, but that it is important to choose those who have the right skills.

– It’s about human life.

DN has searched Black Rhino AB, without results.