The Master Locksmiths Association was first conceived in 1957 and was the idea of the Chubb Lock Company and one or two London Locksmiths.  The prime mover was Mr. Steve Fallshaw, then a locksmith in The Barbican, who became it's first Chairman when it was formally founded early in 1958.  The original sixteen members decided the new 'association' should be known as The Greater London Master Locksmiths (GLMLA).

By the end of the first decade it had grown nationally with a wide distribution of members from all parts of the United Kingdom.  At this time it elected its first national President namely Mr. Steve Stephens of Oxford.  The association by now included members from overseas and a healthy growth has been maintained, it now numbers almost 2000 members in all sectors.

In the early 90's the association restructured to meet modern demands, retraining its title Master Locksmiths Association (MLA) it formed three sectors.  They are the 'British Locksmiths Institute' (BLI) for its individual members skill qualifications, 'Guild of Keycutters' for all producers of keys wishing to comply to standards and 'Approved Company' for trading companies.  The fourth 'Affiliates' sector remained unchanged and represents the manufacturers and suppliers to our industry.

The MLA is recognised as the authoritative body for locksmithing by: -

• The Police
  Many forces will encourage those in need of a locksmith to use MLA Trade Division members.
• Home Office
  The MLA has been instrumental in campaigning for national standards in
  the locksmith industry and the regulation (through licensing) of the
  Private security Industry.
• British Standards Institute
  the MLA supplies a panel of its members to assess locks under BS3621 clauses 4 and I 0 on their behalf.
• Sold Secure
  An attack test house, wholly owned by the MLA. Sold Secure operates its
  own scheme, which is recognised by the Home Office, insurers and the
  police. All testers are MLA members and the assessments are to its’ own
  high specifications.
• Association of British Insurers
  (ABI), Building Research Establishment (BRE) and many other trade and
  professional bodies all acknowledge the MLA as the authoritative body
  in its’ field.
• To find out more visit www.locksmiths.co.uk