Guide

Martyn’s Law: what UK venues need to know

The Terrorism (Protection of Premises) Act 2025 will require most public venues in the UK to prepare for the risk of terrorism. This guide explains who is in the scope of the requirement, what each different tier of venue must do, and exactly what is in force today.

Last verified against the Act and official guidance on 2 September 2026 · Reviewed fortnightly

What Martyn’s Law is

The Terrorism (Protection of Premises) Act 2025 is commonly known as Martyn’s Law, after Martyn Hett, one of the 22 people murdered in the Manchester Arena attack in 2017. It requires those responsible for qualifying premises and events to have thought about the risk of terrorism and to have proportionate procedures, and in larger settings, measures in place to reduce harm.

The Government’s published estimates put roughly 180,000 UK premises in scope. The Act is in force only in small part today: the duties on venues begin at commencement, expected in spring 2027, and the Home Office has confirmed that will not be before April 2027.

Is my venue in scope?

Under section 2 of the Act, premises qualify when four things are true:

• They consist of a building, or a building and other land;
• They are wholly or mainly used for one or more of the uses specified in Schedule 1 (shops, food and drink, entertainment and leisure, sports grounds, libraries, museums and galleries, halls, visitor attractions, hotels, places of worship, healthcare, bus and railway stations, education and childcare, and others);
• It is reasonable to expect that from time to time, 200 or more individuals may be present at the same time in connection with those uses; and
• They are not excluded premises under Part 1 of Schedule 2.

“Other land” matters more than it sounds: land that forms part of the premises and is used for, or associated with, its specified uses counts. The statutory guidance’s examples include a pub with a beer garden, a restaurant with outside seating, a hotel with grounds used by guests and the public, and a stately home and garden. People in those areas count towards the attendance figure.

Schedule 2 excludes some premises and events entirely, including Parliament and the devolved legislatures, open-air parks and recreation grounds without admission controls, and transport premises already covered by aviation, rail and port security regimes.

Counting people: the test is expectation, not capacity

The test is the number of individuals it is reasonable to expect to be present at the same time, from time to time. That is expected actual attendance, not the building’s theoretical maximum. The statutory guidance asks for a reasonable method of calculating the greatest expected number, and its supplementary documents accept several: fire-safety occupancy figures, historic attendance data, fixed seating and standing capacity, ticketing or registration limits, and licensed capacity. A venue with a large fire capacity but consistently lower real attendance can rely on evidenced attendance data to justify the lower figure.

Two details venues often miss: the count must include staff and other people working at the premises, and it counts people present in connection with the Schedule 1 uses, not simply anyone in the building for any purpose.

The two tiers

Some premises stay in the standard tier regardless of numbers: places of worship, childcare, and primary, secondary and further education premises are standard tier even if they expect 800 or more. Higher education premises get no such rule and can be enhanced tier. Events held at those worship and education premises are also excluded from the qualifying events regime.

What both tiers must do: procedures

Section 5 requires appropriate public protection procedures to be in place, so far as reasonably practicable. These are procedures to be followed by people working at the premises if there is reason to suspect that an act of terrorism is occurring, or about to occur, at or in the immediate vicinity of the premises, and the Act describes four, functionally:

• Evacuating individuals from the premises;
• Moving individuals to a place on the premises where there is less risk of physical harm;
• Preventing individuals entering or leaving; and
• Providing information to individuals on the premises.

The statutory guidance labels these evacuation, invacuation, lockdown and communication. Note that the statutory “lockdown” category is wider than the everyday word: it covers preventing people entering or leaving.

At the standard tier there is no statutory requirement to write these procedures down or submit anything describing them. The guidance calls documenting even simple procedures good practice, and notes it may be difficult to demonstrate compliance at an inspection without documentation, but the legal duty is to have the procedures in place.

Extra duties at the enhanced tier

Public protection measures

Section 6 adds a duty to have appropriate public protection measures in place, so far as reasonably practicable, across four statutory categories: monitoring the premises and their immediate vicinity; the movement of individuals into, out of and within the premises; the physical safety and security of the premises; and the security of information.

The compliance document

Section 7 requires enhanced duty premises and qualifying events to prepare and maintain a document containing: a statement of the procedures in place; an assessment of how those procedures reduce the risk of physical harm; a statement of the measures in place or proposed to be put in place; and an assessment of how those measures reduce vulnerability and risk. It must be given to the SIA as soon as reasonably practicable after it is prepared, and revised versions within 30 days of revision.

Two precise points. Only measures may be “proposed”: procedures must be stated as in place. And the content list can grow: regulations under section 7(1)(e) may add required content. None have been made yet, and the SIA has said it will publish templates and supplementary guidance before commencement.

The senior individual

Where the responsible person for enhanced duty premises or a qualifying event is an organisation rather than an individual, section 10 requires it to designate an individual concerned in its management or control as responsible for ensuring compliance. There is no equivalent duty at the standard tier.

Qualifying events

An event qualifies under section 3 when it is held at a building or land that is not already enhanced duty premises, it is reasonable to expect that at some point during the event 800 or more individuals may be present at the same time, and measures are in place to check that those attending have paid, hold tickets or passes, or are members or guests of a club, association or similar body. Events listed in Part 2 of Schedule 2 are excluded, including events at places of worship and most education premises. Qualifying events carry enhanced-tier duties: public protection measures, their own compliance document, and faster, 14-day notification clocks.

Telling the SIA: the notification requirement

The rules here are no longer a guess. The Terrorism (Protection of Premises) (Notification Requirements) Regulations 2026 (SI 2026/793), made on 9 July 2026, take effect at commencement and set out:

• When. Premises already in scope at commencement: within three months of commencement day, or 28 days from becoming the responsible person, whichever is later. Qualifying events: within 14 days of the event first being publicised, or of commencement day for events already publicised by then. Corrections to information that is no longer accurate: 28 days for premises, 14 days for events.
• How. In the form required by the SIA, through its online portal unless the SIA directs otherwise. Volunteer testing of the portal begins in early 2027, with general availability effectively at commencement.
• Who may submit. The responsible person, or a person they authorise to act on their behalf. Where someone else submits, the notification must include the submitter’s name, role, relationship to the responsible person and a confirmation of authority. Legal responsibility stays with the responsible person and cannot be delegated.
• What. Identity and contact details of the responsible person and of anyone else with control; the premises address and Schedule 1 use; the greatest number of individuals reasonably expected at the same time and how that figure was calculated; and at the enhanced tier, the designated senior individual’s details.

What is in force today, and the road to commencement

• April 2025. Royal Assent.
• 10 April 2026. Section 27 in force (SI 2026/320), enabling the Home Office statutory guidance, published 15 April 2026.
• 15 June 2026. The SIA’s guidance and advice duties in force (SI 2026/622).
• 9 July 2026. Notification Requirements Regulations made (SI 2026/793), operative at commencement.
• 14 July 2026. Home Office guidance on the notification requirement has been published.
• Autumn 2026. The SIA’s final regulatory guidance and consultation report is expected.
• Spring 2027. Expected commencement; the Home Office has confirmed it will not be before April 2027. A three-month notification window for existing premises follows.

How the SIA plans to regulate

The SIA consulted on draft regulatory guidance between 15 April and 12 June 2026. The draft, still to be finalised, describes a supportive, proportionate and risk-based approach: routine inspections on at least 72 hours’ written notice, with warrants where an inspection has been frustrated, notice would defeat the purpose of entry, or access is needed urgently; graduated, primarily civil enforcement through compliance, restriction and penalty notices, each normally with a representations stage and a right of appeal to the First-tier Tribunal; a light touch at the standard tier, where minor non-compliance may simply be met with a referral to published guidance; and no published compliance ratings. Inspectors can view and copy documents on the premises and ask staff directly about the procedures and measures, so day-to-day readiness matters as much as paperwork.

Go deeper

• The scope checker: your likely tier in four questions, carve-outs included.
• Standard vs enhanced tier: what actually changes between the tiers.
• The documents checklist: every record, tier by tier.
• The notification requirement: SI 2026/793, deadline by deadline.
• What is in force today: the live commencement state.
• The FAQ: short answers to the common questions.
• Reference: Martyn’s Law in numbers and the glossary.
• Sector guides: pubs and hospitality, places of worship, schools and education, village and community halls, and local authorities.

What venues should do now

1. Work out your tier honestly: apply the section 2 test with a defensible attendance method, and record the reasoning.
2. Identify the responsible person and anyone else with control of the premises, and how you will coordinate.
3. Start assembling the documents now, so the three-month notification window is an administrative task rather than a scramble. Our complete documents checklist sets out all 26 records, tier by tier, and which go to the SIA, which are held as proof, and which are good practice.
4. Set a calendar reminder for a date in autumn 2026: the SIA’s final guidance will settle formats and templates. We’ll update this page when we know more.