VenueReady · Martyn's Law guides

Martyn's Law for village halls

Village halls and community centres are covered if 200 or more people can reasonably be expected there at the same time. For most halls that do reach that figure, the duties are simple and need no building work.

The short answer

Work out the most people your hall has at its busiest regular events. Under 200: the law does not apply. 200 to 799: standard tier. The committee stays responsible, even when the hall is hired out.

Is my hall covered?

Martyn's Law (the Terrorism (Protection of Premises) Act 2025) lists the uses it covers. One of them is halls and the guidance names village halls, community centres and venues for hire.

What matters is the most people you can reasonably expect at the same time, from time to time, counting volunteers and anyone working there. The guidance gives a useful example: a hall with a fire capacity of 250 that has never had more than 150 people is not in scope. One unexpected concert that fills it does not change that. Regular concerts would.

You can use your fire risk assessment, your licence, your booking records or ticket numbers to work out the figure. Write down the figure and how you got it.

Who is responsible?

Whoever is in control of the hall. The official example names the hall's management committee. Ownership does not decide it; control does. If trustees, a committee and a parish council share the running of your hall and you are not sure who that is, check the guidance or ask the SIA.

What about hirers?

Responsibility does not pass to the people who hire the hall. The committee stays responsible, so it should:

tell hirers about the hall's procedures before their booking
put this in the hire agreement
keep a record that it has done so

The one exception is a large ticketed event of 800 or more people with checks on the door, where the organiser becomes responsible for that event.

What the standard tier asks

Tell the regulator. The Security Industry Authority (SIA) will run a free online service, with paper and easy-read versions on request. You will have three months from the start date.
Have four simple procedures, as far as is reasonably practicable.
Make sure volunteers and hirers know them. The guidance says a senior volunteer briefing the others is enough. You do not need a paid course.

What the four procedures mean in a hall:

Evacuation: Getting everyone out by the safest exits and to a meeting point away from the hall.
Invacuation: Moving people to a safer room inside, away from doors and windows, if going outside is the bigger risk.
Lockdown: Closing and securing the doors so no one can get in.
Communication: How whoever is in charge that day warns everyone and who calls 999. For a hire, that may be the hirer.

A short written plan is not required by law, but the guidance recommends it. For a hall with many hirers, a one-page card per procedure is the simplest way to share it.

When

The government expects the duties to start in spring 2027. The exact date has not been confirmed yet and will be announced in advance. You do not have to do anything today, but the steps are simple and worth doing early.

One plan for every hirer and volunteer

VenueReady writes your hall's four procedures from simple questions and puts them on the phones of your committee, volunteers and hirers. It keeps a record of who has been briefed and costs one price per hall.

Check if the law applies to you See how VenueReady works

The tier check is free and needs no account. VenueReady helps you organise and record your preparations. It does not certify compliance or replace professional advice.

Where this comes from

Checked against the official guidance on 17 October 2026. If the guidance changes, it wins over this page.