What is Martyn's Law?

Martyn's Law is the Terrorism (Protection of Premises) Act 2025, a UK statute requiring publicly accessible premises to take "reasonably practicable" steps to reduce the risk of harm from a terrorist attack. It is also referred to as the Protect Duty (the original Bill name during drafting). The Act was named after Martyn Hett, killed in the 2017 Manchester Arena bombing, after a seven-year campaign led by his mother Figen Murray, OBE.

From the floor. Twelve months between guidance and commencement is not generous for an enhanced-tier programme, and clients who started planning at Royal Assent in April 2025 are now well-paced; clients who started at guidance publication a year later are already behind. The boards I work with treat the commencement date as the binding deadline and back-plan an internal kickoff at least 18 months ahead of it. If you have not nominated the responsible person yet, that is the first board agenda item, not the last. — Toni Moss, Managing Director and Owner

The legislation received Royal Assent on 3 April 2025. The Home Office published the Section 27 statutory guidance on 15 April 2026 (corrected PDF, 130 pages, 7 August 2026) plus three supplementary papers covering capacity calculation, illustrative scope examples and further resources. The Home Office notification guidance followed on 14 July 2026 and the SIA's regulator guidance on 17 July 2026. Commencement is expected in spring 2027; the SIA will confirm the exact date ahead of time, and premises then have three months to notify the SIA.

The Act creates two tiers based on capacity. Standard tier premises (200 to 799 capacity) must notify the SIA and put public protection procedures in place across four named areas: evacuation, invacuation, lockdown and communication. Enhanced tier premises (800 capacity and above) and qualifying events (800 or more with entry checks) carry additional duties including a documented compliance narrative sent to the Security Industry Authority (SIA), a designated senior individual and four formal categories of public protection measures (monitoring, movement, physical safety and security, security of information). Places of worship and most education premises stay standard tier at any capacity. Senior individuals at enhanced-tier organisations face personal criminal liability where breaches involve consent, connivance or neglect.

Penalties land at up to £10,000 for standard tier breaches and the greater of £18m or 5% of worldwide revenue for enhanced tier and qualifying events, with daily penalties for continuing breaches and restriction notices that can prevent a venue opening or an event proceeding. Strive AV's Martyn's Law compliance services and complete guide cover scope determination, tier mapping and the technology side of the duty.

Quick reference: Terrorism (Protection of Premises) Act 2025; Royal Assent 3 April 2025; Section 27 guidance 15 April 2026; notification guidance 14 July 2026 (3 months from commencement); expected spring 2027 commencement, date to be confirmed; standard tier 200-799 capacity (£10k penalties), enhanced tier 800+ premises and 800+ events (£18m or 5% global revenue).