The new terrorism‑preparedness law, sorted in an afternoon.
If your hall, church or club can reasonably expect 200 or more people at the same time, Martyn's Law is likely to apply to you. Wellinhand turns the official guidance into a guided checklist — procedures written, people briefed, evidence kept — built for venues that run on volunteers.
Takes about three minutes. No sign-up needed to see your result.
The law applies where 200 or more people may reasonably be expected to be present at the same time — realistic attendance, not just the fire-capacity sign.
Expected commencement — the Home Office has confirmed the law won't come into force before April 2027. The Security Industry Authority (SIA) is the new regulator, and every in-scope venue will need to notify it.
Evacuation, invacuation, lockdown, communication. No physical security measures, no consultants required — workable plans, and people who know them.
Four procedures. That's the heart of it.
Standard tier venues must have appropriate, workable procedures covering four situations — and the people who run the venue need to know them well enough to act.
Evacuation
Getting people out of the building safely — routes, exits, and who does what.
Invacuation
Bringing people inside, or moving them to a safer part of the building.
Lockdown
Securing the premises — locking doors, closing shutters, keeping people away from danger.
Communication
Telling the people on site what's happening and what they should do.
What Wellinhand does
The guidance tells you what to do. Wellinhand is the system that does it with you — and remembers.
Guided procedure builder
Answer plain-English questions about your building and how it's used. Wellinhand drafts your four procedures, mapped line-by-line to the official statutory guidance, ready for your committee to review and adopt.
Training & briefing log
Record who's been briefed and when — trustees, staff, regular volunteers, new committee members. Links to the free government ACT e-learning, with completion stored against each person.
Reviews, drills and reminders
An annual review cycle with automatic reminders. Log walk-throughs and drills in two minutes. When the secretary changes, the handover pack means nothing is lost.
One-click evidence pack
A dated bundle of your procedures, briefing register and review history — ready for your insurer, your hirers, your committee, or the regulator. The answer to "can you show me?" is always yes.
Built for venues that run on goodwill
And for the organisations responsible for dozens — or hundreds — of them.
Halls, churches, clubs & theatres
For the treasurer or secretary who's read the headlines and wants this handled properly, without becoming a security expert.
- Village & community halls
- Churches and places of worship — standard tier at any size, once in scope
- Sports & social clubs, scout and guide halls
- Small theatres, cinemas and function rooms
Dioceses, councils & networks
One dashboard across every premises you support: who's ready, who's in progress, whose review is overdue. Push approved templates down; evidence rolls up.
- Dioceses, circuits and denominational bodies
- Local authorities with community buildings
- Village hall networks and community trusts
- Club networks and governing bodies
Honestly: you don't need to buy anything to comply.
The government's statutory guidance is free, the ACT e-learning is free, and the standard tier duties are deliberately simple. Neither the Home Office nor the SIA endorses any product — including this one. Anyone telling you otherwise is selling fear.
What you can't download for free is memory: a system that knows who was briefed and when, reminds you when the review is due, survives committee changeovers, and produces the evidence on demand. That's what Wellinhand is for.
The countdown to commencement
One short email a month: what's changed, what it means for community venues in plain English, and what (if anything) you should do about it. Plus early access to Wellinhand when we launch.
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Common questions
What is Martyn's Law?
It's the common name for the Terrorism (Protection of Premises) Act 2025, named after Martyn Hett, one of the 22 people killed in the Manchester Arena attack in 2017. It requires publicly accessible premises that can reasonably expect 200 or more people at the same time to be prepared for the possibility of a terrorist attack. It's expected to come into force in Spring 2027, regulated by the Security Industry Authority.
Does it apply to my hall or church?
The test is whether 200 or more people may reasonably be expected to be present at the same time — your realistic busiest moments, not just the number on the fire-capacity sign. Many smaller halls will be out of scope. The 200 threshold applies to places of worship and education settings too; once in scope, they're standard tier at any size and never escalate to the enhanced tier. Our free scope checker walks you through it in three minutes.
What does standard tier actually require?
Three things: notify the SIA (free, online, once their system opens); have appropriate, workable procedures covering evacuation, invacuation, lockdown and communication; and make sure the people who run your venue know them (plus a duty to coordinate with other responsible persons where premises are shared or nested). No physical security measures, no terrorism risk assessments, no consultants required. Full plain-English breakdown here.
Do we need to buy software, training or consultancy?
No. The official guidance is free and the duties are achievable by any well-run committee. Wellinhand exists because volunteers change, paperwork gets lost, and "we did it once in 2026" isn't the same as being able to show your insurer a living record. We'd rather tell you that plainly than pretend otherwise.
What happens if we do nothing?
Honestly? Probably not a knock on the door. The regulator has said it will take a supportive, advisory-first approach — guidance and warnings come before any enforcement, and civil penalties (up to £10,000 at standard tier) are a backstop for venues that won't engage, not a trap for ones that try. The pressure you'll actually feel sooner is your insurer and your hirers asking what your arrangements are — and there'll be no public register to point them to, so your own records are the only proof that exists. And the real reason to act has nothing to do with enforcement: the duties exist because simple preparation genuinely saves lives.