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Schools across the UK are preparing for new responsibilities under **Martyn’s Law**, formally known as the Terrorism (Protection of Premises) Act 2025.

The legislation received Royal Assent on 3 April 2025 and is designed to improve protective security and organisational preparedness across publicly accessible premises, including many education settings. Although the substantive requirements of the Act are not yet in force, schools are being encouraged to use the implementation period to understand their responsibilities and review their existing emergency procedures.

For schools, colleges and other education settings, one area deserves particular attention: **communication**.

Having an emergency plan is essential. But if an incident occurs, can the people responsible for implementing that plan communicate quickly, clearly and reliably across the entire site?

What does Martyn’s Law mean for schools?

Martyn’s Law was introduced following campaigning by Figen Murray OBE, whose son Martyn Hett was one of the 22 people killed in the Manchester Arena terrorist attack in 2017.

The legislation aims to ensure organisations are better prepared to respond to terrorist attacks and other suspected terrorist incidents.

Education settings that can reasonably expect **fewer than 200 people** to be present fall outside the scope of the Act. However, the Department for Education continues to encourage all settings, regardless of size, to maintain appropriate preparedness plans for the safety of pupils, students and staff.

For qualifying premises, responsible persons will need to ensure that appropriate public protection procedures are in place, so far as is reasonably practicable.

These procedures cover four key areas:

- **Evacuation** – moving people away from danger and out of the premises.

- **Invacuation** – moving people to a safer location within the premises.

- **Lockdown** – securing the premises to prevent or restrict people entering or leaving.

- **Communication** – alerting people to danger and providing appropriate instructions.

That final requirement makes effective school communications an important part of emergency preparedness.

Would your existing communication system work during an emergency?

Schools are complex environments.

A single site can include classrooms, sports halls, playgrounds, reception areas, offices, workshops, dining areas and separate buildings spread across a large campus.

During an emergency, information may need to reach key members of staff almost immediately.

Consider a few practical scenarios.

How would reception quickly alert senior leadership if a potential threat was identified at the school entrance?

How would staff supervising pupils outside be informed of a lockdown?

Could caretakers, safeguarding staff and senior leaders communicate while positioned in different buildings?

If an evacuation route became unsafe, how quickly could that information be passed to those coordinating pupils elsewhere on the site?

These are exactly the types of operational questions schools should consider when reviewing their emergency procedures.

The role of two-way radios in school emergency communications

Martyn’s Law does **not** require schools to purchase two-way radios or any particular communications technology. Government guidance specifically makes clear that the Act does not automatically require premises to make physical alterations or purchase specific equipment.

Considerations for schools

However, schools still need to consider how their chosen procedures could be implemented quickly and effectively.

For many education settings, a professionally designed **two-way radio system** can provide a practical method of communication between the staff responsible for putting emergency plans into action.

Unlike a conventional phone call, radio communications can allow a message to be shared immediately across a predetermined group of users.

That could include senior leadership, safeguarding teams, reception staff, caretakers, site security personnel and other nominated members of staff.

Depending on the radio system selected, schools can also benefit from features such as:

**Group communication**��

Important information can be transmitted to multiple members of staff simultaneously rather than relying on individual phone calls.

**Emergency alerts**��

Compatible radios can provide dedicated emergency functions, allowing users to raise an alert quickly when assistance is required.

**Dedicated channels or talkgroups**�

Different teams can communicate separately while retaining the ability to coordinate during an incident.

**Site-wide coverage**�

A properly designed radio network can provide communications across classrooms, corridors, outdoor areas and separate buildings.

**Location capabilities**

Some systems can provide location information, helping authorised personnel identify where a radio user may be situated. The appropriate solution will depend on the individual school, its buildings, staffing arrangements and existing emergency procedures.

Having radios is not the same as having an effective communication plan Simply owning two-way radios does not guarantee effective emergency communication.

Schools should consider whether their existing system has been designed around the realities of their site. There may be areas where radio coverage is poor, for example inside older buildings, basements, plant rooms or more remote sections of a campus.

Radios may also have ageing batteries, insufficient capacity or channels that are not structured around the teams expected to respond during an incident.

Schools should therefore ask more than:

“Do we have radios?”

A more useful question is:

“If we had to activate our emergency procedures today, could the right members of staff communicate with each other immediately?”**

Testing is particularly important.

Government guidance

Government guidance makes clear that the people responsible for carrying out public protection procedures need to understand those procedures and be ready to put them into practice.

Emergency communications should therefore form part of wider staff awareness, planning and preparedness.

Reviewing your school’s emergency communications

As schools prepare for Martyn’s Law, now is a good opportunity to review existing communication arrangements.

Consider:

- Who needs to receive emergency information immediately?

- How will a lockdown instruction be communicated?

- How will staff outside the main building be alerted?

- Can key personnel communicate across the whole school site?

- Are there any known radio coverage blackspots?

- Can staff raise an emergency alert discreetly?

- Are radios regularly tested, charged and maintained?

- Do staff understand which channels or talkgroups to use?

- Have communication procedures been incorporated into emergency exercises?

Answering these questions can highlight communication gaps before they become critical.

How Eemits Communications can support schools

At Eemits Communications, we work with schools and education providers across the UK to design reliable two-way radio communication systems around their individual sites and operational requirements.

Rather than simply supplying handheld radios, we can assess factors such as coverage, capacity, user requirements and emergency functionality to develop a communications solution suited to the school environment.

As Martyn’s Law brings greater focus to emergency preparedness, schools have an opportunity to consider whether their communication arrangements are capable of supporting their wider safety procedures.

The objective is not simply to have technology available.

It is to ensure that when information needs to reach the right people quickly, the communication system is ready to perform.

Preparing for Martyn’s Law? Speak to Eemits Communications - by submitting our contact us form - about reviewing your school’s two-way radio and emergency communication requirements.