Martyn's law
Martyn's Law (the Terrorism (Protection of Premises) Act 2025) aims to improve security preparedness across publicly accessible locations by ensuring that organisations consider how they would respond to a terrorist incident and put in place proportionate procedures to help protect people.
For education settings, the law will apply to schools and colleges where it is reasonable to expect 200 or more people to be present at the same time. The Government has confirmed that schools will remain within the standard tier of the legislation, regardless of their overall size. Standard-tier requirements are expected to focus on practical procedures such as evacuation, lockdown, invacuation and communications plans, rather than requiring major physical security measures or costly infrastructure changes. Schools with fewer than 200 people on site will be outside the scope of the legislation, although they are encouraged to consider appropriate preparedness arrangements.
Although the Act became law in April 2025, it is not expected to come fully into force until at least 2027, allowing time for implementation and the publication of detailed guidance. The Home Office, Security Industry Authority (SIA) and Department for Education are developing further statutory guidance to help education settings understand and meet their responsibilities. Norfolk County Council is currently reviewing the implications for schools and will provide further advice and guidance when more information becomes available.
There is information about how Martyn's law will affect Schools and Early Years settings on the DfE website
