What is "Martyn's Law"?

The Terrorism (Protection of Premises) Act, known as Martyn’s Law, was drafted in response to the 2017 Manchester Arena attack, and is designed to improve public safety by encouraging public venues and spaces to have plans to respond to the threat of terrorist attack.   

The Act received Royal Assent on 3rd April 2025 and will be implemented within two years.  A video explaining the Act can be found here.  

Who it affects and why it matters

The Act affects:

• Public venues with a capacity for over 200 people.
• Public spaces (including event organisers using these locations) and;
• Organisations in publicly accessible locations with more than 250 staff.

Naturally, this includes many of our Village Halls, Community Centres, and Parks.  These spaces will be required to have developed “proportional” plans to respond in the event of a terrorist attack.

It would be easy to think that this Act doesn’t affect our (sometimes) small and / or rural community buildings but the recent tragic attack in Southport have shown that these attacks aren’t just limited to the big arenas with security measures.  Ultimately, regardless of how likely your venue is to be targeted it is better to be prepared and not need to be, than not be prepared and need it, as the saying goes. 

It has been emphasized that the requirements will be proportional and a tiered approach is being taken.  The two tiers are:

• A standard tier (venues with a capacity of 200 – 799) of low-cost, simple, activities to improve preparedness. This is likely to include training, information sharing and completion of a preparedness plan to embed practices, such as locking doors to delay attackers progress or knowledge on lifesaving treatments that can be administered whilst awaiting emergency services.  The overarching aim will be to ensure spaces are better prepared to respond quickly to evolving situations, have awareness of processes they should follow, be able to make rapid decisions and carry out actions that will save lives.
• An enhanced tier (venues with a capacity of over 800) will likely require all the standard tier responses and additionally require a risk assessment to inform the development and implementation of a thorough security plan.  It could include measures such as developing a vigilance and security culture, and / or physical measures like CCTV. 

All measures should be considered to a ‘reasonably practicable’ standard to reduce the risk of attack and its impact, by assessing the balance of risk reduction against the time, money and effort required to achieve a successful level of security preparedness.

Who is responsible?

The Act places responsibility on the person(s) with control of the space or event.  There is also a requirement for co-operation by those who have aspects of control of the premise or event (e.g., the owner of a premise where they are not the operator) where necessary to deliver requirements.

For voluntary sector spaces it seems that the onus falls on the Trustees / Owners, and for Hirers / Event organisers to comply with and support the measures.  Understandably, this raises questions about the impact on spaces and venues that are unstaffed (like Village Halls, parks etc run by charities, community groups or social enterprises and local authorities) and places of worship. 

What should we do?

Right now, the Home Office guidance is still being developed, so no one can say with absolute certainty what the right practices are to adopt.  That being said, there are some excellent resources to help you prepare for the guidance to be rolled out, and what to consider when thinking about your own events and activities. 

Where to get info

• ACT in a box – this is an series of immersive digital exercises aimed at helping you consider how you would respond to different attacks.   
• Summer Campaign Digital Toolkit – to help raise public awareness of what to do if they are concerned.  
• Risk Management Process - a guide on what to think about including when carrying out a risk assessment.  This also helps you to think about what other policies you might need to consider (such as Lone Working). 
• National Protective Security Authority Guidance – these guides for venues, events and public spaces consider different types of threat, what they are, what to look for and how to respond.  

Once the guidance has been released ACRE will be working to amend their information sheets, model hire agreement and other resources to ensure these reflect government advice. 

Keeping up to date

We will be keeping our mailing group for Village Halls, Parish Councils, Playing Fields and Recreational Groups updated with news on this Bill.  If you would like to be added to this mailing list, please contact us on office@communityactionnorfolk.org.uk and be sure to include the group you represent.

The Home Office is pleased to share additional material about the Act including a one page leaflet and a myth buster. Download the Martyn's Law Myth Buster here.

As of 18th May 2026

Since the Home Office published the statutory guidance for the Terrorism (Protection of Premises) Act 2025, setting out expectations for qualifying premises and events, the UK National Threat Level increased on 30th April, from SUBSTANTIAL to SEVERE (meaning an attack is highly likely).  This means that all organisations, whether in scope or not, are advised to review their security plans in response to the increase.  Guidance can be found here. 

Some key points about the Home Office Guidance for Village Halls and Community Buildings:

• The guidance is not yet enforceable and is intended to help those in scope prepare, with the government advising against the use of third‑party compliance providers at this stage.  It will come into force in 2027.
• Part of the criteria is that it is reasonable to expect that from time to time, 200 or more individuals may be present on the premises at the same time.  This means that it is possible for premises to move in and out of scope, or from one tier to another based on how many individuals it is reasonable to expect will be present at the same time, from time to time.
• If a premises is not in scope but has an unexpected, one-off occurrence where more than 200 people are present, the premises will remain out of scope of the Act.  This is only the case if the attendance would not have been reasonably expected and is not expected to happen again.
• If the premise is normally out of scope but does have planned and expected occurrences that take the premises over the threshold of either tier from time to time, the premises will come into scope under the relevant tier.
• Outdoor spaces can be excluded or included depending on the type of space, and the type of event, for example, parks, gardens, recreation grounds, sports grounds (which are not designated sports grounds) and other open-air spaces used for recreation, exercise, or leisure are excluded from the Act.  This is true unless there are measures in place which check that people accessing the place have tickets / passes or are a member / guest of a club to gain access.  However, if some areas are restricted, but others are not (such as a playing field charging for use of football pitches, but the rest of the area remaining publicly accessible) then these are not in scope.
• Land attached to a Village Hall or Community Building is included in its area. 
• Qualifying premises / events will have a responsible person who ensures the requirements of the Act are met.  The identify of the responsible person is the individual or organisation that has control of the premises.  They can delegate tasks but not the responsibility (as with other legislation like fire safety).  Where the property is leased / licenced / hired the responsibility can lie with the lease / licence holder / hirer.  For example, Hall is leased to a charity in its entirety to operate it as a village hall, the charity is responsible, or if a hirer books the hall for an event that is in scope, the hirer is the responsible person during the event, the charity remains responsible for outside of the event.
• For enhanced tier (over 800 people) premises / events the responsible person (where it is an organisation) MUST designate a senior individual to ensure compliance. 
• It is anticipated that with venues like Village Halls and Community buildings, that the responsible person will work closely with hirers with activities / events in scope to ensure that they understand and comply with the Act.  This could be communicated in the hire agreement process etc along with the health and safety or fire safety.
• Qualifying premises should have a set of actions / plans to reduce the risk of harm to people before / during a potential act of terror.  For unmanned Village Halls this could include displaying procedures in a communal area (if appropriate) or carrying out an induction with hirers.
• Evacuation due to a suspected terror attack will ne different to other sorts of evacuation plan and should therefore be reviewed to consider different dangers.

As of 15th April 2026

The Home Office published the Terrorism (Protection of Premises) Act 2025 section 27 statutory guidance (also known as Martyn’s Law) on April 15, 2026, aimed at helping venues and event organisers prepare for new security requirements. The nine-chapter document outlines how to determine if premises are in scope, defines "responsible persons," and sets out security measures for both standard and enhanced tiers, with the Act expected to become fully enforceable later. Key aspects of the released statutory guidance include:

• Scope and Application: Detailed guidance on whether premises (public venues with 200+ capacity) or events are in scope of the standard or enhanced tier.
• Legal Requirements: Specific, actionable steps for the "responsible person" to conduct risk assessments, implement training, and create security procedures.
• Preparation Period: While published, the requirements are not yet legally enforceable; this period is designed to allow organisations to prepare before official commencement.
• Regulatory Approach: The Security Industry Authority (SIA) launched a concurrent consultation on its role as the regulator.

The guidance, accessible on the GOV.UK website, is designed to ensure proportionate security measures without placing undue burdens on smaller businesses.The guidance, accessible on the GOV.UK website, is designed to ensure proportionate security measures without placing undue burdens on smaller businesses.