Oculus Group traces its origins to the security sector, where our founder, Dave Ward, began his career generating leads and arranging client appointments for Heritage Security, a regional provider. He developed an early and detailed understanding of how the industry operated, and identified an opportunity that others had overlooked. Having first become a delivery partner and subsequently acquiring the business outright, he assumed direct control over the way security services were structured and delivered, establishing the foundation for a considerably more ambitious enterprise.
In 2012, Heritage was rebranded as Oculus – a change that reflected a clear statement of intent. The company secured Approved Contractor Scheme (ACS) accreditation from the Security Industry Authority at the outset, establishing compliance and quality as founding principles rather than later ambitions. That ACS status has been maintained without interruption ever since.
Growth followed rapidly. A modest initial portfolio of contracts expanded into a multi-million-pound operation within a few years. At a time when the wider security market remained heavily oriented towards manned guarding, with comparatively little emphasis on technology-led solutions such as CCTV and access control, Oculus recognised the gap and planned accordingly.
Manned guarding was established first, followed by dog handling as demand from industrial and construction clients increased. A subsequent acquisition then reshaped the business: the addition of Site Guard introduced CCTV installation and access control capabilities, enabling Oculus to deliver genuinely integrated security in place of single-service provision.
The company’s expansion into cleaning services represented a logical extension of its capabilities rather than a departure from them. Years of security work had demonstrated a consistent principle: the most demanding aspect of any service business is not the service itself, but the recruitment, vetting and retention of reliable personnel – a discipline the security sector requires and the cleaning sector frequently underestimates. By applying the same standards of vetting and operational rigour to its cleaning teams, Oculus earned the confidence of clients, and further contracts followed.
Today, Oculus operates as a fully integrated facilities management group, providing security, cleaning and maintenance services to clients throughout the United Kingdom, including CBRE, Peel L&P and Mercedes. The company directly employs more than 140 people, reflecting a conviction that has guided the business from the outset: that well-supported, capable people deliver better outcomes.
Our management team brings together more than fifty years’ combined experience across facilities management, the security industry and the Armed Forces. Oculus holds ACS accreditation alongside ISO 9001, ISO 14001 and ISO 45001 certification, and its client retention rate reflects a long-held belief that performing the work properly, on every occasion, is the only sustainable basis on which to operate in this industry.