Martyn's Law: What UK Security Companies Need to Know About the Protect Duty

If you supply guarding to venues, events, or public-facing sites, one piece of legislation should be on your radar above almost any other: Martyn's Law.

Formally the Terrorism (Protection of Premises) Act, and named in memory of Martyn Hett, one of the 22 people killed in the 2017 Manchester Arena attack, the Act received Royal Assent in 2025. The government has said there will be a substantial lead-in period — at least 24 months — before the duty comes into force, with commencement expected in 2027. That lead-in is not a reason to wait. It is a window to get ready, and for security companies, it is a genuine commercial opportunity.

This post explains what Martyn's Law does, who it applies to, and how a well-run security operation can help clients meet the duty while building it into their own service offering.

What Martyn's Law Actually Requires

The core idea is simple: certain premises and events must take steps to be better prepared for, and better protected against, terrorist attacks. Rather than mandating a fixed shopping list of physical measures, the legislation is built around a tiered, risk-based approach.

There are two tiers, based broadly on how many people may be present:

• The standard tier applies to qualifying premises where 200 or more individuals may be present. The focus here is on simple, low-cost procedures — how staff would respond to an attack, how people would be evacuated or invacuated, how the alarm would be raised, and how a lockdown would work.
• The enhanced tier applies to larger premises and qualifying events where 800 or more individuals may be present. Enhanced-tier duty holders are expected to go further, putting in place measures to reduce both the risk of an attack and the harm it could cause, and to document their approach.

The Security Industry Authority (SIA) is set to take on the regulatory role for the new regime, with powers to inspect and enforce. That is a significant point for our industry: the same body that licenses your guards is expected to oversee this duty.

Who Does This Affect Among Your Clients?

Think about the sites your guards already cover. Many will fall within scope:

• Shopping centres and larger retail premises
• Entertainment and sports venues
• Bars, nightclubs, and hospitality venues above the capacity threshold
• Conference centres and exhibition halls
• Places of worship, visitor attractions, and public buildings
• Events — from festivals to large ticketed gatherings

The duty falls on the person responsible for the premises or event, not on you as the security contractor. But your clients will look to their security provider for practical help. If you can walk into a tender conversation already fluent in Martyn's Law, you are immediately more valuable than a competitor who has never heard of it.

Why This Is an Opportunity, Not Just a Burden

Compliance obligations tend to be framed as costs. Martyn's Law is different, because meeting it depends on exactly the things a good security company already does well: planning, drills, communication, and record-keeping.

Here is where you can add value:

Procedures and Evacuation Planning

Standard-tier premises need clear, workable procedures. You already write and rehearse these. Offering to review a client's evacuation, invacuation, and lockdown plans — and to train their staff alongside your guards — turns a legal requirement into a service line.

Documentation and Evidence

Enhanced-tier duty holders will need to show their working. This is where operational technology matters. If your guards are logging incidents, patrols, and check calls digitally, you already have a defensible, timestamped record of how the site is managed day to day. That evidence base is exactly the kind of thing a regulator wants to see.

Ongoing Assurance

Preparedness is not a one-off. Plans drift, staff change, and layouts get reconfigured. A security company offering a regular review — supported by clear reporting — helps clients stay ready between the big set-piece exercises.

How TacDesk Helps You Support Clients

Martyn's Law rewards operators who can demonstrate consistency. That is where a proper guard management platform earns its keep.

With TacDesk, the day-to-day evidence a client needs is generated automatically as your guards work:

• Digital incident reporting captures what happened, when, and where — timestamped and stored against the shift, not scribbled in a paper daybook that gets lost.
• GPS-verified patrols and clock-ins prove that a site was actually covered during the hours it was contracted for.
• Assignment instructions live in the app, so site-specific emergency procedures — including lockdown and evacuation steps — are in every guard's pocket rather than in a folder in the control room.
• Client-ready reporting lets you hand a duty holder a clean, professional record of how their site has been managed, which supports their own compliance story.

None of this is a substitute for a venue's own risk assessment and procedures. But it is the operational backbone that makes those procedures real on the ground — and it is the difference between a security company that talks about preparedness and one that can prove it.

What to Do Now

You do not need to wait for the duty to commence to get ahead of it:

1. Map your client base. Identify which of your sites are likely to fall into the standard or enhanced tier.
2. Get fluent. Make sure your managers understand the two-tier structure and the SIA's expected role, so they can speak to it confidently in client meetings.
3. Tighten your evidence. Move incident logs, patrols, and assignment instructions onto a system that records everything automatically. When the duty bites, the operators who already have clean records will win.
4. Package it. Consider a "Protect Duty support" offering — plan reviews, staff training, and ongoing reporting — as a paid add-on to your guarding contracts.

Martyn's Law is a serious piece of legislation born from a tragedy, and it deserves to be treated that way. But for security companies that take it seriously early, it is also a chance to lead — to be the provider that helps clients get ready, rather than the one scrambling to catch up.

See how TacDesk gives you the operational records that back up a serious security offering — start a free trial at tacdesk.co.uk. No setup fees, no contracts, cancel any time.