Opening the gates: what rural estates need to know about Martyn's Law

Insight

01.07.2022

From triathlons to vintage car rallies, estates that open their doors to the public need to be aware of the Terrorism (Protection of Premises) Act 2025 (the Act) – also known as Martyn’s Law. Passed in April 2025, it is currently in a two-year implementation phase, and comprehensive statutory guidance has just been published.

There are two situations in which an estate could come within the Act. First, estates that are open to the public year-round will be subject to the duties set out in the Act if it is reasonable to expect that 200 or more people will be present at any one time. Secondly, estates to which there is no general public admittance, but which hold one-off events (including purely open-air events), will need to comply with the Act where it is reasonable to expect that 800 or more individuals will be present at the event at any one time.

For estates open to the public year-round, you must first establish which tier you fall under. Standard tier requirements apply to those premises (buildings, or buildings and land) where it is reasonable to expect more than 200 people. If it is reasonable to expect more than 800 individuals to be present at any one time (even if only on a couple of days throughout the year), you will also need to comply with enhanced tier requirements. Standard tier requirements are set out at section 5 of the Act:

Who is the responsible person? The responsible person will be the person with control of the premises for the relevant use. This is likely to be either the legal owner, such as the trustees, or the trading subsidiary if one is used to run the estate as a visitor attraction. Remember that there may be more than one responsible person if different entities run different elements. In this case, all responsible persons are under a duty to coordinate with each other. The responsible person will also need to notify the Security Industry Authority (SIA), the regulatory body, of who they are and the premises for which they are responsible.
The core of the duty is that the responsible person must ensure that appropriate 'public protection procedures' [FC1.1] are in place to reduce the risk of physical harm to individuals if an act of terrorism were to occur on the premises or in the immediate vicinity.
There are four procedures set out in the Act: invacuation, evacuation, lockdown and communication. The responsible person must consider, first, what is appropriate and, secondly, what is reasonably practical for their premises, balancing the potential effectiveness of any procedure against the cost and feasibility of implementation.
Although it is not a statutory requirement, the statutory guidance suggests that it is good practice for everything to be documented. The SIA has search and investigation powers, so compiling evidence of what you have done and why seems sensible.
Staff also need to be made aware of the procedures and how to implement them. The Act stops short of requiring mandatory training, but practically it is difficult to see how to achieve the required awareness without some level of training. Again, keep records to demonstrate compliance.

The guidance suggests that the responsible person should also consider maintaining a readily accessible grab bag or incident response kit containing key information to support any response, such as staff contact details and floor plans. Consider where to store this.

Where enhanced tier requirements also apply, the responsible person must additionally consider what 'public protection measures' [FC2.1] should be put in place. Again, these are listed in the Act and include measures for monitoring the premises or event, such as the use of CCTV.

The Act is straightforward to read, and the statutory guidance includes useful examples for rural estates. Estates must remember that although responsible persons can delegate individual tasks to event companies, overall responsibility for compliance remains with the responsible person.

Check contracts with third-party event organisers, therefore, for appropriate indemnities and a clear division of responsibility. Finally, do not forget that insurers are likely to require compliance with these new duties and responsibilities.

Read the government's statutory guidance on Martyn's Law (The Terrorism (Protection of Premises) Act 2025).

This publication is a general summary of the law. It should not replace legal advice tailored to your specific circumstances.