Martyn's Law Explained: What the New Duties Mean for Your Venue

If you run a venue, manage a public event, or are responsible for premises the public can access, one piece of legislation should be on your radar now: Martyn's Law. Formally the Terrorism (Protection of Premises) Act 2025 (once known as the Protect Duty), it received Royal Assent on 3 April 2025 and is expected to come into force in spring 2027, following an implementation period of at least 24 months. That lead time is deliberate, and it is your opportunity to get ahead.

What is Martyn's Law?

Martyn's Law is named in memory of Martyn Hett, one of the 22 people killed in the 2017 Manchester Arena attack. His mother, Figen Murray, campaigned tirelessly for a legal duty to make public places better prepared for terrorism. The Act delivers that: it requires those responsible for certain premises and events to take proportionate steps to keep people safe in the event of an attack.

Crucially, the law is about preparedness. It does not ask every corner shop or village hall to install airport-style security. It asks the people in charge of qualifying premises to think ahead, plan, and make sure staff know what to do.

The two tiers: where does your premises sit?

The Act works on a tiered basis, determined by how many people may be present at your premises or event.

• Standard tier (200 to 799 people). The focus here is simple, low-cost preparedness: putting procedures in place and making sure staff are briefed on what to do in an emergency, such as locking down, evacuating, or moving people to safety. There is no requirement to buy equipment.
• Enhanced tier (800 or more people). Larger premises and events take on additional obligations, including putting in place public-protection measures, documenting them, designating a senior individual responsible for compliance, and providing a compliance document to the regulator.

Martyn's Law is not about creating fear. It is about making sure that, on the worst possible day, the people in charge of a venue already know what to do.

Who enforces it?

The Security Industry Authority (SIA), the same body that licenses security operatives, will act as the regulator for Martyn's Law. Its role will be to support premises to comply first and foremost, with enforcement powers held in reserve for those who ignore their duties. Penalties differ sharply by tier: relatively modest fixed penalties at the standard tier, and substantial monetary penalties at the enhanced tier for serious non-compliance.

What you should be doing now

There is no legal duty to comply until the Act formally commences, but the organisations that fare best will be the ones that treat the run-up as preparation time, not downtime. Practical first steps include:

• Work out your tier. Assess the realistic maximum number of people who may be present. That single figure determines your obligations.
• Review your procedures. Do you have clear, written plans for evacuation, invacuation (moving people to safety inside) and lockdown, and do your staff know them?
• Train your people. Preparedness lives or dies on whether frontline staff know how to act. Free counter-terrorism awareness training such as ACT is a sensible starting point.
• Get the right security partner. Professional, SIA-licensed officers who understand crowd management, access control and emergency response are central to meeting the spirit of the law.

How Go Security can help

This is exactly the kind of preparedness we build for our clients every day. Our SIA-licensed officers are experienced in event security, crowd and queue management, access control and emergency response. Where your plan relies on alarm or CCTV monitoring, that is provided through an NSI Gold accredited monitoring centre, with our 24/7 control room handling escalation and officer dispatch. Whether you run a single venue or a portfolio of sites, we can help you assess your exposure and put a proportionate, credible plan in place well before spring 2027.

Sources include GOV.UK and ProtectUK guidance on the Terrorism (Protection of Premises) Act 2025. The commencement date and detailed requirements are subject to secondary legislation and statutory guidance; this article is general information, not legal advice. Confirm your obligations against the latest official guidance.