Martyn's Law Standard Tier

When developing proposals for Martyn's Law legislation for the education sector, I worked closely with experts from across the sector to ensure that proposals were sensible, proportionate and informed.  The general consensus was that the sector should be within scope of the Duty, but there were real concerns about the potential financial implications on large schools and colleges already struggling with limited resources that might fall within the Enhanced Tier.   It was also clear that these settings were not as open as other premises within scope such as universities or shopping malls.  It was agreed that a proportionate response for education settings that already adhere to strict safeguarding legislation, was that they should all sit within the Standard Tier of the Duty; no matter the maximum capacity.  The focus of this tier will be on incident response such as evacuation and lockdown plans as well as the ability to effectively communicate the response across a site.

The Standard Tier of Martyn's Law is about having plans and procedures in place to mitigate the impact of any attack; plans that are understood by all your staff and are regularly tested.  Ensuring you have these plans in place now, will not only help your preparedness for any legislation but will ensure your setting is safe from a range of threats.

• Reviewing the physical security of your site through the lens of terrorism and serious violence and advising on any gaps or vulnerabilities
• Reviewing the security culture at your setting, including your communications strategies
• Reviewing your existing policies and plans and advising on any changes and improvements to ensure they are effective 
• Reviewing the testing of your policies and plans