What is Martyn's Law?

What Martyn's Law does

The Terrorism (Protection of Premises) Act 2025 is commonly called Martyn's Law in memory of Martyn Hett, one of the 22 people killed in the Manchester Arena attack in 2017. It applies across England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. The Act is intended to improve preparedness at certain premises and events and, for larger premises and events, reduce vulnerability to terrorist attacks.

The Act assumes that an attack might happen anywhere. It does not require each responsible person to predict the likelihood of an attack at their particular site. Instead, it requires appropriate procedures and, in the enhanced tier, measures that are reasonably practicable in the circumstances.

• All premises and events in scope must plan appropriate procedures for evacuation, invacuation, lockdown and communication, so far as reasonably practicable
• Enhanced tier premises and qualifying events must also put appropriate public protection measures in place, document compliance and, for organisations, designate a senior individual
• The SIA will support compliance, assess it and use enforcement powers where necessary

Which premises are in scope

A site is qualifying premises only if all the statutory conditions are met. It must be a building, part of a building, a group of buildings, or a building with other land. It must be wholly or mainly used for one or more activities in Schedule 1, it must be reasonable to expect at least 200 people there at the same time from time to time, and it must not fall within a statutory exclusion.

Schedule 1 covers a wide range of uses, including shops, food and drink, entertainment and leisure, sports grounds, libraries, museums and galleries, halls, visitor attractions, hotels, places of worship, health care, transport premises, childcare, education and public authority premises. The threshold is not simply a fire capacity figure. The responsible person must assess the greatest number of people, including staff, who may reasonably be expected at the same time.

• Standard tier: generally 200 to 799 people at the same time
• Enhanced tier: generally 800 or more people at the same time
• Premises below 200 people are normally outside the premises duties, but an event there may still qualify separately
• Places of worship, childcare, primary and secondary education, and further education remain in the standard tier even where 800 or more people are expected; higher education does not have this special treatment

Which events are in scope

A qualifying event is subject to the enhanced requirements. Broadly, it must take place at a building, land, or both; be open to members of the public; have 800 or more people reasonably expected at the same time; and use measures to check paid admission, tickets or passes, or membership or guest status for a club or similar body. It must not take place at premises already treated as enhanced tier premises or at excluded premises.

An open-access event without an entry check is not a qualifying event under section 3, although premises used for the event may be qualifying premises in their own right. Events at places of worship and at childcare, primary, secondary or further education premises are not qualifying events under the Act's special provisions.

• The 800-person event test includes staff and others present in connection with the event
• The count concerns people present at the same time, not total footfall across the day
• Control of the premises for the purposes of the event normally determines who is responsible

Who is legally responsible

For qualifying premises, the responsible person is the individual or organisation with control of the premises for its relevant Schedule 1 use. This may be an operator or tenant rather than the freehold owner. For a qualifying event, it is the person with control of the premises for the purposes of the event. Legal responsibility cannot be transferred to a consultant or contractor, although tasks can be delegated.

Where more than one responsible person is involved, the Act can require them to co-ordinate. A person with relevant control who is not the responsible person may also have to co-operate, so far as reasonably practicable.

• Identify the legal person or organisation in control, not merely the person doing the paperwork
• Record landlord, tenant, organiser and contractor interfaces
• Enhanced tier organisations must designate a sufficiently senior individual to oversee compliance

What changed from the earlier proposals

Some descriptions of Martyn's Law still repeat duties from the May 2023 draft Bill. Following pre-legislative scrutiny, the Bill introduced to Parliament in September 2024 raised the lower threshold from 100 to 200 people, applied the reasonably practicable test to both tiers, and removed the proposed prescribed training requirement and mandatory Standard Terrorism Evaluation form. Those items are not duties in the 2025 Act.

Workers still need to be aware of procedures so that they can carry them out. Training or instruction may therefore be a practical way to implement a suitable procedure, and the Home Office strongly recommends documented training for relevant enhanced tier roles. That is different from a legal requirement to buy or complete a particular course.

• No mandatory Standard Terrorism Evaluation form
• No prescribed training course in the Act
• No general standard tier duty to buy equipment or make physical alterations
• No legal requirement for standard tier premises to submit procedure documents to the SIA

When Martyn's Law starts

The Act received Royal Assent on 3 April 2025. The Government provided for an implementation period of at least 24 months. Section 27, which enables statutory guidance, came into force on 10 April 2026, but the main premises, event and enforcement duties have not yet commenced.

The SIA says the Act is expected to come into force in spring 2027 and that the exact date will be confirmed in advance. As at 4 October 2026, there is no confirmed commencement date and no legal requirement to comply with the substantive duties yet. Organisations can use the implementation period to assess scope, identify responsibility and prepare proportionate procedures.

• Read the Home Office statutory guidance before relying on a checklist or template
• Use free ProtectUK material to develop awareness and preparedness
• Do not attempt to notify the SIA until its portal opens
• Once the duty starts, existing qualifying premises will have three months to notify; later changes of responsible person generally have a 28-day limit
• Qualifying events will generally have a 14-day notification limit from commencement or from the date the event is first publicised, as applicable
• Review the position when a commencement regulation or updated SIA announcement is published

Sources

1. Terrorism (Protection of Premises) Act 2025
2. Home Office: Martyn's Law statutory guidance
3. SIA: Understanding Martyn's Law and the SIA's role as regulator
4. ProtectUK: Martyn's Law frequently asked questions
5. UK Parliament: introduction of the Terrorism (Protection of Premises) Bill
6. Commencement No. 1 Regulations 2026
7. Home Office: Martyn's Law notification requirement

This guide summarises UK law and HSE guidance for small businesses. It is not legal advice; check the sources and your own circumstances.