Karl Pardoe, Account Executive, Genetec discusses how Martyn’s Law underscores the need for UK venues to adopt unified security systems that integrate surveillance, access control and incident response under a single platform.

Martyn’s Law: Improving public safety

By now, all live sport and entertainment venues in the UK likely will likely be aware of Martyn’s Law and considering its possible impact on existing incident response plans.

For anyone playing catch-up, Martyn’s Law (also known as the Terrorism Protection of Premises Act 2025), seeks to improve public safety by requiring entertainment venues, retail, hospitality and places of worship to plan for and respond to terrorist threats.

It became law in April 2025 and will come into force no earlier than April 2027, with venues and event organisers encouraged to use this time to understand and prepare for their new legal obligations.

Martyn’s Law seeks to better protect staff and visitors by improving security measures and organisation preparedness in the event of a serious incident.

It follows the 2017 Manchester Arena bombing that left 21 dead and aims to ensure public venues and spaces have plans in place for emergencies.

Broadly speaking, qualifying venues fall under one of two tiers dependent on how many people (including staff) can reasonably be expected to be on the premises at any one time.

Spaces with an anticipated capacity between 200-799 people will come under ‘standard tier’ and venues over 800 will be ‘enhanced tier’.

The Security Industry Association has been designated as the official regulator and will be given new powers to enforce the law through inspections, compliance notices, and penalties.

Standard Duty premises must notify the Security Industry Association (SIA) and have basic public protection procedures such as evacuation, lockdown and communications plans.

There are no additional requirements in terms of physical security systems.

Enhanced Duty premises and qualifying events

Enhanced Duty premises and qualifying events must additionally submit a security plan to SIA, conduct a risk assessment, designate a senior responsible individual and may need to implement additional physical security measures, such as video monitoring and access control.

For those seeking direction the measures outlined in the National Counter Terrorism Security Office’s (NaCTSO) guidance on Publicly Accessible Locations including CCTV, bag checks, vehicle monitoring and more is a great place to start.

The NaCTSO’s guidance also highlights the importance of creating a security culture across all personnel; any new security protocols must therefore leverage technology that helps to reinforce this.

Naturally, the cost impact will be a big consideration for venues when implementing changes.

Starting now and phasing upgrades throughout the two-year implementation period is advisable to spread the financial burden and avoid headaches in the run-up to the deadline.

Developing targets and attack methods

The Association of Event Venues’ (AEV) response to the Government announcement rightly identifies that targets and attack methods change over time. Venues should also consider a system that can adapt to whatever form the legislation takes.

As UK venues wait for confirmation over the next year and a half about what Martyn’s Law means for their business, a sensible step to prepare for any eventuality is to assess the capabilities of the existing security solutions in place.

Are they fit for purpose and can they evolve with the venue’s requirements? With the increasing amount of new security technologies and sensors available, an open approach to security is critical.

All of this is most easily achieved within a unified security system that enables operators to visualise all relevant data through a single intuitive interface.

With a single interface to master, training time and costs across multiple systems can be reduced.

Equally, the last thing needed in a crisis is operators having to jump between different pieces of software to figure out what is happening.

Greater visibility means faster, more efficient incident response and a direct impact on a venue’s ability to preserve life.

Weaving advanced technology into a unified system turns this visibility into more lines of defence.

Threat level management

Effective preparedness for emergencies and acts of terror also incorporates standard operating procedures that make incident response replicable.

Unified solutions can implement Threat Level Management to change the state of the security system in response to different conditions.

For example, when the event is over, unlock all doors and rotate positions of cameras to monitor the departing public or trigger a site-wide emergency response in an instant.

The increasing responsibilities of venues

It will almost certainly be the case that Martyn’s Law increases the responsibility of venues to assist the Police during and after a terror incident, therefore procedures for secure sharing of video evidence should be considered.

Evidence is still commonly heavily reliant on manual sharing processes such as through USB sticks or burning onto DVDs.

Yet the Cloud offers much better options for a faster, safer and more accountable means of providing access to digital evidence, making it an ideal choice that venues should consider when upgrading CCTV systems.

Planning ahead

As we continue to learn more about Martyn’s Law and the implementation process comes to an end, the necessary adjustments venues will be required to take shall become clear.

Venues looking to plan ahead and ensure they are prepared should factor in long-term costs and budgets, encourage training of security and stay updated with new security technologies.

Upgrading to a unified security solution early will put venues in the best position for a new era of anti-terror security operations.

This article was originally published in the October edition of Security Journal UK. To read your FREE digital edition, click here.