Start Preparing for Martyn’s Law

Martyn’s Law, otherwise known as the Terrorism (Protection of Premises) Bill, is proposed legislation designed to enhance security and preparedness at premises.

The updated requirement to produce preventative security plans against potential violent attacks are complex but, with heavy penalties proposed for failure to comply, building a good understanding early is critical to prevent being caught out.

Tiered Approach – Standard or Enhanced

The tiered approach covers both premises – a building, part of a building, group of buildings and/or land – and qualifying public ‘events’, based on the number of attendees.

These Tiers are:

• 200 people and above
• 800 people and above for premises, specified in schedule 1 of the legislation, and/or

800 people and above for an event with public access at a premises that doesn’t otherwise qualify.

It isn’t necessarily about counting how many members of the public are attending, but rather how many people are there ‘at any one point’, including staff.

It is important to consider what the building is being used for. For example, factories are not included in the legislation, but if an event is being hosted at the factory on a particular day and the number of attendees meets the criteria, the factory will qualify under Martyn’s Law.

Duty Holders

There are two duty holders under the forthcoming legislation:

• The responsible person, which relates to an individual or company with control of the premises generally or for a specific event.
• The new designated senior officer, who must be appointed to oversee premises/events with 800 or more attendees.

The designated senior officer must be either a director, officer or senior manager, and therefore they can be more easily identified, and this individual would be responsible for:

• carrying out a Security Risk Assessment and reviewing it at least annually;
• making a Security Plan; and
• working with the regulator – the Security Industry Authority (SIA).

Penalty Notices

Contravening the legislation could impose a maximum £10,000 fine for premises with 200 or more attendees. For premises or events with 800 or more attendees, the penalty could rise to as much as £18m or 5% of the company’s worldwide revenue, whichever is greater, and could bring criminal prosecutions.

Summary

In summary, Martyn’s Law is likely to receive Royal Assent in 2025 and then there would be a two-year implementation period; to begin preparation you must consider the requirements and what applies to you.

Obligatory measures:

• monitoring premises and the movement of individuals in and out;
  • keeping sensitive information secure; and
  • managing procedures for alerting emergency services and notifying attendees.

Looking ahead, it would be sensible to start preparing the Standard Terrorism Evaluation and Security Risk Assessment which should include assessing likely types of threats and reasonably practicable measures to reduce the likelihood and harm.

Other considerations:

• supporting Procedures.
• measures for Business Resilience.
• support from insurers.
• Evacuation Plans.
• an increase in the number of First Aid ‘trauma’ kits in case of a major incident and multiple casualties.

For those individuals who will be responsible for premises/events with 800 or more attendees, you should start preparing the Security Plan and make an early start on preparing terrorism protection training.

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