Martyn’s Law: what schools should prepare before they spend

A clearer explanation, ahead of commencement

The DfE published its education explainer on 3 November. It is non-statutory guidance to be read with the Home Office’s statutory guidance. It gives school leaders a more specific route into the framework, rather than bringing the substantive duties into force through publication.12

The SIA currently expects commencement in spring 2027 and says the exact date will be confirmed. That creates a preparation period with a purpose: establish what applies, involve the right people and resolve uncertainty while there is time to do so carefully. An expected date should retain that status in the school’s plan.3

The useful leadership response begins with an explanation everyone can use. Governors need to understand the responsibility they are overseeing; staff need arrangements they can carry out. A purchasing deadline cannot substitute for either.

Start with the premises and the people, not pupil roll alone

Qualifying school premises with a reasonable expectation of at least 200 people present together, from time to time, receive standard-tier treatment even at 800 or more. Count the relevant staff and visitors as well as pupils. A small roll is therefore an incomplete answer to the scope question.1

For a trust, a central policy should help each school establish its position. The DfE distinguishes geographically separate schools from a group of nearby buildings. Shared management does not turn a national estate into one attendance calculation. Keep the premises and the evidence behind the expected numbers together.1

Independent schools share the school-specific treatment. References to privately funded independent training providers concern a different category. Where an estate has several uses or operators, establish the actual boundaries and control arrangements before drawing a conclusion. Our independent-school continuation follows that question through the school day.1

Keep legal responsibility distinct from the person organising the work

The DfE identifies the expected responsible body as the governing body for maintained schools, the academy trust for academies, and the governing body or, where there is none, proprietor for independent schools. The statutory role is determined by law and cannot simply be transferred to a contractor.1

Once the substantive requirements commence, qualifying premises will also need to notify the SIA. Include that future step in the preparation record and follow the regulator’s arrangements, rather than treating notification as an obligation already due.3

A business leader, estates director or security lead may coordinate preparation without becoming that statutory body. Make the distinction explicit in the meeting record. Who can approve the arrangements? Who will bring back the unresolved question? Which colleagues have to be involved for an agreed change to work?

That clarity gives outside expertise a useful place. The school can seek help on an identified issue, explain the authority for the work and retain ownership of the eventual decision. Buying advice should make accountability easier to exercise.

Bring the four procedures into the life of the school

The framework centres on evacuation, invacuation, lockdown and communication, with appropriate procedures in place so far as reasonably practicable. Their suitability depends on the premises and the circumstances. Home Office guidance connects this with the people expected to act, existing equipment, instruction and practising the arrangements.2

A useful school discussion follows one arrangement through the people who rely on it. Would a colleague covering a different role understand who makes the decision? Have communication and assistance needs been considered with the appropriate staff? Does an out-of-hours user understand the arrangements that apply to the space they use? These are preparation questions, not instructions for responding to an incident.

Schools can draw on the DfE’s existing protective-preparedness guidance, official templates and free ACT for Education resources. These are established support routes, not new publications this week. Use them to examine what the school already has and where understanding needs strengthening.56

Give any proposed spending a job to do

Home Office guidance does not prescribe physical alterations or particular equipment for public protection procedures. It also explains that an alteration may be reasonably practicable in particular circumstances. The school’s decision should connect a proposed improvement with the effectiveness of its arrangements. A universal equipment list would miss that judgement.2

Ask a provider to explain the problem the work addresses, what existing arrangements it will use and what the school will be able to check afterwards. Include staff time, maintenance, continuing costs and how the change fits the rest of the school’s safeguards. A quotation becomes easier to assess when its intended contribution is clear.

The absence of a prescribed standard-tier risk-assessment document under this Act does not remove existing school health and safety responsibilities. DfE’s standing security guidance already connects security risks, competent advice, safeguarding and business continuity. Keep those responsibilities visible alongside the new framework.421

Leave the next meeting with an owned decision

A written preparation record can help the school hold the discussion together without presenting the form itself as a legal requirement. Keep the understanding of the premises, responsible body and existing procedures beside the evidence, unresolved question and person taking the next action. Reference sensitive records in their approved location rather than copying their contents.

Sometimes the next action will be to clarify a boundary or obtain advice. Sometimes it will be to improve staff understanding, review an existing arrangement or commission defined work. What matters is that leaders can explain why the action follows from the school’s circumstances and how they will judge its result.

Our preparation guide provides a starting record for that conversation. Use it to reach a proportionate next step: a school that understands its position, knows what it can already rely on and can explain what still needs resolving before it commits further time or money.