Enforcement expected spring 2027
Who holds the dutyFor brokersabu@musterlog.co.uk
← All places of worship

Martyn's Law for churches

Churches and cathedrals are always standard tier, even when the building holds well over 800. Here's what that means across the Christian year.

Short answer

If a church can reasonably expect 200 or more people at the same time on its busiest occasion, counting staff and volunteers, it's in scope. Places of worship are always standard tier, even above 800. That means procedures for what to do in an attack, people on duty who know them, and notifying the SIA. Writing the procedures down is recommended. You don't need CCTV, barriers, bag searches or security staff.

What's different for churches

Count Christmas, not an ordinary Sunday

The test is the busiest occasion you can reasonably expect, including clergy, staff and volunteers. A church with 80 on a Sunday can pass 200 at a carol service, Midnight Mass, Easter, a big funeral or Remembrance Sunday. If it does, it's in scope.

Concerts and hired-out events

When a choir, school or events company uses the building, the church stays in standard tier and keeps the duty. The guidance gives the example of an 800-plus concert at a church: it isn't a separate qualifying event. A hire agreement can require the hirer to follow your procedures.

Halls, side chapels and towers

The church hall, side chapels, crypt, vestry and any café or shop all need covering by the same four procedures. Older buildings often have one main door and narrow side exits, which is worth thinking through for evacuation and lockdown.

Volunteers and rotas

Sidespeople, wardens, welcomers and flower rotas change week to week. The duty is that the people there know the procedures, so keep a note of who's been briefed and when, and brief new volunteers as they join.

Who the responsible person is

Whoever has control of the building. For a Church of England parish that's normally the incumbent and the parochial church council. For other denominations it's usually the trustees or the equivalent body. Write down who specifically is doing the work.

If your diocese already has a system

Several dioceses and denominations already provide guidance or a system for this. If yours does, use it. We're most useful where nothing exists yet, or where the system covers the buildings but not the record of who was briefed.

What to do, step by step

  1. Work out your busiest occasion and whether it reaches 200.
  2. Agree who the responsible person is, by name.
  3. Notify the SIA once the notification process is set out.
  4. Agree the four procedures: evacuation, invacuation, lockdown and communication. Start from the free ProtectUK templates and write them down.
  5. Brief everyone who'd be on duty, and keep a note of who and when.
  6. Walk through them now and then, and review them when the building or the team changes.

The 8-step roadmap covers each of these in more detail, with what the law requires and what's only recommended.

Free help

Look after a church, a circuit or a group of churches? We're taking on a small number of free pilots with faith networks while the product is built. Talk to us, or see how places of worship are treated in general.

This is a plain-English summary, not legal advice. Governance differs between communities, so establish properly who holds the duty rather than assuming. Musterlog doesn't make anyone compliant, and no product is endorsed by the Home Office or the SIA.

Primary sources: the Terrorism (Protection of Premises) Act 2025 and the statutory guidance.