Martyn's Law
Key information about:
What is Martyn's Law? | Does it apply to my premises?
Does it apply to my event? | How do I comply? | Who is responsible?
What is Martyn's Law?
Martyn's Law, also known as the Terrorism (Protection of Premises) Act 2025, aims to strengthen security at public premises and events and help keep people safe in the event of a terrorist attack.
Its name is a tribute to Martyn Hett, one of the 22 victims of the Manchester Arena terrorist attack in 2017, and to his mother Figen Murray, whose campaigning played a vital role in ensuring the legislation was introduced.
Martyn's Law places the responsibility of preparedness and public safety onto the premises or event (specifically the responsible person at that venue or event) to ensure they consider the procedures necessary to reduce the risk of physical injury to the public if an act of terrorism occurs.
Larger locations and events are also required to assess their vulnerabilities and liabilities to terrorist acts and take appropriate actions to reduce these.
Martyn's Law is expected to come into effect in April 2027.
Does Martyn's Law apply to my premises?
Martyn's Law applies to all buildings in the UK to which members of the public have access, with a total expected number of 200 or more people on site or in attendance (ticketed, open, with a pass or otherwise).
The full, detailed list of buildings, premises and venues covered by the Act is available on legislation.gov.uk, but includes:
- Shops
- Restaurants
- Entertainment, leisure and recreation
- Sports grounds
- Libraries
- Museums and galleries
- Exhibition and conference halls
- Visitor attractions
- Childcare
- Education
- Public authorities
- Hotels and hostels
- Holiday parks
- Places of worship
- Health care
- Bus and railway stations
- Airports
Does Martyn's Law apply to my event?
An event will qualify if it:
- is expected that 800 or more people will be in attendance at the same time
- takes place at a location that falls under one of the qualifying premises
- is accessible to the public
- has a secure perimeter and entry conditions in place (tickets, registration, membership or other means of checking who is accessing the event).
Tensor's suite of security systems is suitable for sites of all sizes — find out more about our Access Control.
What do I need to do comply with Martyn's Law?
Martyn's Law is split into two tiers, dependent upon the number of people normally expected to be on the premises:
Standard Tier: 200-799 people
Enhanced Tier: 800 or more people
The Standard Tier is for premises that expect to have between 200-799 people on site at one time, most of the time.
All qualifying premises must notify the Security Industry Authority that they do so.
They must also have appropriate "reasonably practicable" public protection procedures (a plan) in place which should reduce the risk of physical harm being caused in the event of a terrorist attack on the premises, at the event, or nearby.
In the event of an emergency, Tensor's access control systems integrate with emergency exit buttons and break glass release units, and our Fire Roll Call app can also provide a report of personnel and registered visitors on-site, broken down into zones as required.
Am I responsible for my property meeting the requirements of Martyn's Law?
In a similar way to fire safety or health and safety, all premises and events covered by Martyn's Law must have a 'responsible person' who will make sure that the requirements are all met.
For Standard Tier premises this 'responsible person' is the person, organisation or company that has control of it and can make decisions regarding its management and use, including who is allowed on-site. For Enhanced Tier premises and events, this must be a specific person in a senior position.
Failing the requirements could result in a legal notice or a fine of up to £10,000 for Standard Tier premises, or up to £18 million for Enhanced Tier premises.
Tensor's Remote CCTV Monitoring automatically sends a signal to a 24/7 monitoring station when unauthorised movement is detected on site, allowing timely action to be taken in response to any suspicious activity.
Additional information about Martyn's Law, and how Tensor can help you prepare for it, is available on our blog: