Martyn's Law checklist: prepare step by step
Nothing about Martyn's Law is enforceable yet, and that is exactly the point of a checklist: it turns a future deadline into six things you can do this month. Here is the order that actually works.
Step 1: confirm your scope and tier
Before writing anything, work out whether the Act applies to you at all, and which tier. The threshold is 200 or more people reasonably expected on the premises at the same time - staff and volunteers count, not just customers or visitors. Below 200, you're out of scope. From 200 to 799 you're standard duty; from 800 up you're enhanced duty. Run the numbers through our free duty-tier calculator rather than guessing, because the two tiers carry different obligations and very different maximum penalties.
Step 2: appoint a responsible person
The "responsible person" is whoever has control of the premises - usually the operator, owner or on-site manager. This needs to be a named individual (or role) who owns the procedures, not a vague committee. For enhanced-duty premises, this person also owns getting the public protection measures document to the SIA.
Step 3: write the four procedure categories
This is the core of standard duty, and it stays the core for enhanced duty too. Write down, in plain language specific to your premises, what happens for each of:
| Category | What it should cover |
|---|---|
| Evacuation | Routes, assembly points, who checks the building is clear, who takes the register |
| Invacuation | Where people shelter inside when leaving is riskier, how they're moved there |
| Lockdown | Who locks which doors, how quickly, what staff and visitors are told to do |
| Communication | How people on site are told what's happening - PA, radios, staff runners, signage |
Enhanced-duty premises add a fifth strand: documented public protection measures covering monitoring, physical security, information security and vehicle security, provided to the SIA.
Step 4: brief every member of staff
A document nobody has read is not a procedure. Every member of staff who might be on shift during an incident needs to know their own role in each of the four categories - not memorise a manual, just know what they personally do and where to go. Keep the briefing short and specific to their job, and repeat it whenever the procedures change or new staff join.
Step 5: practise it
Walk the evacuation route. Time how long it actually takes to lock the doors that matter. Run a short desktop exercise where someone calls out a scenario and staff say what they'd do. You will find gaps - a fire exit that's usually propped open, a radio channel nobody monitors - and it is far better to find them in a drill than during a real incident.
Step 6: review and keep evidence
Procedures go stale. Set a review date - annually at minimum, and after any change to the premises, capacity or layout - and log who reviewed what and when. That review log is also what you'd show the SIA if asked, so keep it as a simple dated table rather than scattered notes.
A printable version of the checklist
| # | Action | Done? |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Confirm expected occupancy and duty tier | ☐ |
| 2 | Name a responsible person | ☐ |
| 3 | Write evacuation, invacuation, lockdown and communication procedures | ☐ |
| 4 | (Enhanced duty only) document public protection measures | ☐ |
| 5 | Notify the SIA | ☐ |
| 6 | Brief all relevant staff | ☐ |
| 7 | Run a practice walkthrough or drill | ☐ |
| 8 | Set a review date and log it | ☐ |
Skip the blank page. VenueDuty Pro (£29 one-time) turns steps 3 and 4 into a finished document: a 40-clause procedure library across all four categories, printable, with a built-in review log and staff sign-off table. Start with the free duty-tier check.
Check my duty tier — freeFrequently asked questions
What is the Martyn's Law checklist for schools?
The same six steps - confirm scope, appoint a responsible person, write the four procedure categories, brief staff, practise and review - applied to a school premises. See our schools guide for the education-specific detail, including why schools are standard duty regardless of size.
Is there a standard risk assessment template?
The Act doesn't prescribe one fixed template, but a simple scenario-to-procedure table works well: attack type, vulnerability, your procedure, the owner, and a review date. Our risk assessment guide has a copyable version.
Is Martyn's Law mandatory?
Yes, once it commences, expected Spring 2027. Nothing is enforceable yet, which is exactly why working through this checklist now rather than after commencement is worth doing.
What is required under Martyn's Law?
Standard duty (200-799 expected people) needs SIA notification plus procedures for evacuation, invacuation, lockdown and communication. Enhanced duty (800+) adds documented public protection measures given to the SIA. See our full requirements guide for the detail.