The Terrorism (Protection of Premises) Act 2025 creates statutory security obligations for thousands of UK schools and public venues. Enforcement begins April 2027. Here is what you need to know and what you need to do.
Martyn's Law is the common name for the Terrorism (Protection of Premises) Act 2025. It is named after Martyn Hett, who was among the 22 people killed in the Manchester Arena attack in May 2017. Martyn's mother, Figen Murray, campaigned for over six years to make the law a reality.
The Act creates statutory obligations for venues and events above a certain capacity to have documented emergency procedures, trained staff, and — for larger venues — proportionate physical security measures. It places these obligations on a named Responsible Person who holds personal accountability for compliance.
Before the Act, guidance on protective security for public venues was advisory, not mandatory. Martyn's Law changes that. From 1 April 2027, non-compliance can result in improvement notices, financial penalties, and in the event of an incident, significantly increased exposure for the Responsible Person.
Schools are among the most likely venues to fall within Martyn's Law scope. Almost every secondary school in England will be in scope based on their capacity during the school day. Many primary schools will be in scope during public events, productions, open evenings and lettings — even if their regular daily capacity is below the threshold.
Councils, NHS trusts, civic halls, libraries, leisure centres and managed public spaces are almost universally in scope. Any managed event or permanent venue admitting 100 or more members of the public — including Christmas markets, civic ceremonies and community gatherings — is within scope, not just the permanent building.
Your obligations depend on which tier your venue falls into. Capacity is measured as the maximum number of persons who could reasonably be present at any one time — not just your usual attendance.
If you are uncertain whether your organisation is in scope, our free assessment tool will tell you in under five minutes.
For a more detailed checklist including plain-English tests you can apply today, read our article on the 12 physical security requirements.
Our Martyn's Law Readiness Assessment determines your tier, identifies your compliance gaps, and generates a downloadable report you can take to your governors. No registration.
Run Free Assessment →We visit your site, assess your current security provision against Martyn's Law requirements, and give you a written report. Free, no obligation.
Request a Survey →Our detailed article covers every physical security requirement with a plain-English test for each one.
Read the Checklist →We built our free assessment tool, our article library, and our compliance documentation process around Martyn's Law from the outset. It is not a product we adapted from commercial security — it is the reason we built the business the way we did.
Every installation we carry out produces a site-specific Martyn's Law compliance document. Every maintenance contract includes an annual compliance review. Every free site survey assesses your Martyn's Law position as its primary output.
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Procurement, installation and documentation all take time. Schools and public venues that start their compliance programme now have the best chance of meeting the April 2027 deadline without a rushed or inadequate response.