Martyn's Law is the common name for the Terrorism (Protection of Premises) Act 2025, which received Royal Assent on 3 April 2025. It is named after Martyn Hett, who was killed in the Manchester Arena attack in 2017, and it exists because his mother Figen Murray campaigned for years to make venues think about what they would actually do if the worst happened.
If you sit on a village hall committee, two questions matter: does this apply to us, and if it does, what do we actually have to do? This guide answers both. The short version for most halls is that you are in the standard tier, the requirements are about having a plan rather than buying equipment, and you have time to get ready.
When does Martyn's Law come into force?
Not yet. The Act is law, but its duties are not switched on until the Government completes an implementation period, and it has committed to that period being at least 24 months from Royal Assent. In practice that means the duties are not expected to bite before spring 2027 at the earliest, and the regulator has said it wants to spend that time helping venues prepare rather than catching them out.
That is not a reason to ignore it. It is a reason to do it calmly, at a committee meeting, rather than in a panic when a deadline is announced.
Working out which tier you are in
Everything follows from one number: the maximum number of people who could reasonably be expected to be on the premises at the same time. That includes everybody, not just the audience. Your volunteers, the bar staff, the band and the people running the raffle all count.
| Capacity | Tier | What applies |
|---|---|---|
| Under 200 | Out of scope | No duties under the Act at all |
| 200 to 799 | Standard tier | Public protection procedures |
| 800 or more | Enhanced tier | Procedures, plus measures, a documented assessment and a named senior individual |
A great many village halls fall under 200 and have no duties whatsoever. A hall with a main room seating 250 for a wedding is standard tier. Very few village halls reach 800, and the ones that do are usually large community centres or halls with extensive grounds used for events.
Be honest rather than optimistic about the number. If your hall is licensed for 300 and you have had 300 people in it, you are a standard tier premises even if most weeks you have a toddler group of fifteen.
Standard tier: what a village hall actually has to do
This is the part that surprises committees, usually pleasantly. The standard tier is about procedures, not purchases. There is no requirement to install anything, alter the building, or spend money on security equipment.
You need to have in place, so far as is reasonably practicable, procedures covering four things:
- Evacuation. Getting people out of the building safely.
- Invacuation. Bringing people in, or keeping them in, when the danger is outside. This is the one most halls have never thought about, and it is often the opposite of your fire plan.
- Lockdown. Securing the building to stop somebody getting in. Locking doors, closing shutters, moving people away from windows.
- Communication. How you alert everybody in the building, and how you tell them what to do.
You also need to notify the regulator that your premises is in scope, and there must be a responsible person, which is normally the body that controls the premises. For a village hall that is usually the management committee or the trustees, acting collectively, rather than one unlucky volunteer.
What you do not need is a written risk assessment, physical security measures, or a named individual with a security qualification. Those belong to the enhanced tier.
Enhanced tier requirements: what changes at 800
If your capacity reaches 800 or more, everything in the standard tier still applies and three further duties are added.
Public protection measures. As well as procedures, you must consider measures that reduce vulnerability to an attack and the harm it could cause. That covers monitoring the premises and their immediate vicinity, controlling movement in and out, physical safety and security of the premises, and the security of information that could be useful to an attacker. These have to be reasonably practicable, which means proportionate to your premises and your resources rather than airport style.
A documented assessment. You must produce a document setting out the procedures and measures you have put in place and how they reduce risk, and provide it to the regulator. This is the requirement that most clearly separates the two tiers: standard tier venues are not asked to write anything for the regulator.
A designated senior individual. Where the responsible person is a body rather than a person, someone senior must be named as responsible for ensuring the duties are met.
The regulator sits within the Security Industry Authority, and it has powers to inspect, to require information and ultimately to issue penalties. The Government has been clear that the intention is to work with venues first.
What this does not require
Committees worry about cost, so it is worth stating plainly what Martyn's Law does not ask of a standard tier village hall. It does not require bag searches, metal detectors, CCTV, security staff, bollards, or alterations to the building. It does not require you to employ a consultant. It does not require a written document lodged with anybody. The Government's own position is that standard tier compliance should be achievable at low or no cost.
If somebody is selling your hall an expensive "Martyn's Law package", read the Act before you sign anything.
What to do at your next committee meeting
- Establish your capacity. Write down the maximum number of people reasonably expected at one time, including volunteers and performers, and record how you arrived at it.
- Decide your tier from that number, and minute the decision. If you are under 200, minute that too, so a future committee does not have to work it out again.
- Talk through the four procedures. Where do people go if you evacuate? Where do they go if the danger is outside and you cannot leave? How do you lock the building? How do you tell 200 people in a noisy hall what to do?
- Write it down anyway. The standard tier does not require a document, but a committee changes every few years and a plan that lives in one person's head is not a plan.
- Tell your regular hirers. The playgroup leader and the yoga teacher are the ones who will be in the building, and they are the ones who need to know what the plan is.
Where Village Hall Hub helps
Village Hall Hub includes a Martyn's Law wizard that walks a committee through the capacity question, tells you which tier you are in, and produces the procedures document for your hall. It sits alongside the rest of your compliance records, so the plan is in the same place as your fire risk assessment, your insurance and your PAT testing rather than in a folder nobody can find. It is included on every plan.