In 2025, the UK enacted the Terrorism (Protection of Premises) Act (colloquially Martyn’s Law) to strengthen security at public venues in the wake of recent terror attacks. The law is designed to “improve protective security and organisational preparedness” by requiring those in charge of certain premises to consider how they would respond to a terrorist attack.
It establishes a tiered system of duties based on venue size.
Standard Duty venues are typically those expecting 200–799 people on site.
Notably, primary, secondary, and further education premises are explicitly kept in the Standard Tier regardless of capacity, recognising that schools already maintain safety procedures like lockdown and evacuation drills.
Enhanced Duty premises and qualifying events are premises or events where it is reasonable to expect that 800 or more individuals (including staff numbers) may be present on the premises at least occasionally or attend the event at the same time.
Under Martyn’s Law, Standard Duty organisations now face two core legal obligations:
Register the Premises with the Regulator: The responsible person (e.g. the head teacher or school management) must notify the Security Industry Authority (SIA) that their school is a venue in scope of the Act. The SIA has been appointed as the regulator to advise, support, and ensure compliance with Martyn’s Law requirements across the UK.