Emergency Planning and Lockdown Compliance

In 2025, the UK enacted the Terrorism (Protection of Premises) Act (colloquially Martyn’s Law) to strengthen security at public venues in the wake of recent terror attacks. The law is designed to “improve protective security and organisational preparedness” by requiring those in charge of certain premises to consider how they would respond to a terrorist attack. 

It establishes a tiered system of duties based on venue size. 

Standard Duty venues (the category most schools fall under) are typically those expecting 200–799 people on site. 

Notably, primary, secondary, and further education premises are explicitly kept in the Standard Tier regardless of capacity, recognizing that schools already maintain safety procedures like lockdown and evacuation drills.) 

Enhanced Duty premises and qualifying events are premises or events where it is reasonable to expect that 800 or more individuals (including staff numbers) may be present on the premises at least occasionally or attend the event at the same time.

Under Martyn’s Law, Standard Duty organisations now face two core legal obligations:

• Register the Premises with the Regulator: The responsible person (e.g. the head teacher or school management) must notify the Security Industry Authority (SIA) that their school is a venue in scope of the Act. The SIA has been appointed as the regulator to advise, support, and ensure compliance with Martyn’s Law requirements across the UK.
• Implement “Public Protection Procedures”: Schools must have in place – so far as reasonably practicable – appropriate plans and procedures to protect staff, pupils, and visitors in the event of a terror incident. 

These procedures should be simple, practical steps that “may be expected to reduce the risk of physical harm” if an attack occurs on the premises or nearby. Martyn’s Law explicitly lists the key scenarios that must be addressed: 

• Evacuation (orderly moving of people from the premises or building)
• Invacuation (moving people to a safe indoor area)
• Lock down ( immediate shelter in secure locations within the building)  
• Communication (communicating with individuals on the premises during an incident)

In other words, every school needs a clear plan for swiftly getting people out, bringing them in / sheltering, securing doors, and alerting everyone on site when faced with a potential attack. 

Importantly, these Standard Duty requirements are meant to be low-cost and non-technical – “there is no requirement to put in place physical measures” like new building modifications. The emphasis is on robust procedures and staff preparedness rather than expensive equipment.

What does this mean for UK schools? 

Essentially, school leaders must ensure their emergency plans for terror threats are documented, communicated to staff, and ready to deploy at a moment’s notice. (The DFE issues guidance on Emergency Planning and response for Education, and help with planning checklists.) 

The aim is to make sure “staff are prepared to respond” effectively under duress – for example in schools, that every teacher knows how to initiate a lockdown or call for an evacuation, and that there is a reliable way to notify all staff and students immediately. While many schools already have fire drills and lockdown policies, Martyn’s Law formalizes and standardizes this across all institutions, with the SIA empowered to enforce compliance (through inspections, notices, and fines for serious breaches). In this context, having the right tools to execute and coordinate these security procedures is crucial. 

For further information and information on how the Cosafe critical communication and incident management platform helps schools meet their obligations please download our Martyn’s Law Guide below.