3 ways to automate a Martyn's Law risk assessment

#1 - Simple assessment

Who it's for: Single-site venues recording the Martyn's Law assessment themselves, where you know the premises and just need a clear, structured record.

What it is: A Martyn's Law risk assessment records the terrorism vulnerabilities at a venue, the people they could affect, the controls in place and any further action. This version is structured around the 10 areas that security guidance expects to see addressed: staff awareness, public access points, the emergency response plan, external areas, suspicious behaviour, emergency communication, visible deterrents, unattended items, event bookings, and reviewing the security measures. Each area is a small group of three prompts written for that area. Staff awareness asks you to identify the staff awareness gaps, decide who might be harmed and how, and evaluate the staff awareness arrangements and decide on precautions; Public access points asks about the uncontrolled entry points and who could get in unchecked; and so on through all 10, so every question tells you exactly what it's about.

In practice: A mid-sized venue works down the 10 areas. Under Public access points: the delivery entrance that sometimes gets left unlocked during drop-offs, who's at risk (staff and the public), and the precaution (keep it locked between deliveries and verify the driver). Under Emergency response plan: separate evacuation, invacuation and lockdown procedures confirmed, with the next drill date set. Three short answers per area, and the whole premises gets covered.

Why it works: The 10 areas are the structure security guidance expects to see addressed, so nothing gets missed: the assessment covers detection, prevention and response, not just the gaps someone happened to think of. And splitting each area into three prompts means nobody has to remember what a good answer contains; the structure asks for the risk, the people affected, and the precautions separately, which is what makes the record defensible.

Steps included:

• 10 assessment areas: staff awareness, public access points, the emergency response plan, external areas, suspicious behaviour, emergency communication, visible deterrents, unattended items, event bookings, and review of security measures
• Each area is a group of 3 prompts written for it: identify the gaps or risks, decide who might be harmed and how, evaluate the arrangements and decide on precautions

#2 - With guidance

Who it's for: Venues where a manager, not a security specialist, completes the assessment and needs the method in front of them.

What it is: The same 10 areas and three prompts, but each area's group now carries its own written guidance: why that area matters and what to check before you answer. The staff awareness group carries training completion and refresher briefings; the public access points group carries entrance locks, keypad codes and CCTV; the emergency response plan group carries evacuation, invacuation and lockdown procedures.

What it adds to the simple assessment:

1. Guidance for every area, on screen exactly where you answer it
2. What to check before answering, not just a blank box
3. An assessment that's consistent whoever completes it

Why it works: Generic guidance at the top of a form gets skimmed once and forgotten by area 7. Guidance attached to each area gets read at the moment it's needed, so a manager who isn't a security specialist still asks the right questions about access codes, reconnaissance behaviour, and event bookings.

Steps included:

• The 10 assessment areas, each a group of 3 prompts
• 10 guidance notes, one per area: why it matters and what to check

#3 - With photo evidence

Who it's for: Venues that want visual proof of each area's condition alongside the written record.

What it is: The same 10 areas and three prompts, but each area's group now carries a photo step. As you assess each area you photograph it: the access point, the external terrace, the CCTV signage, the evacuation plan poster. The record shows the condition of each area at the time, not just a description of it.

In practice: A venue security lead works through the assessment with their phone. At Public access points they photograph the delivery entrance and its lock; at Visible deterrents, the CCTV signage at the main door; at Emergency response plan, the evacuation and invacuation plan posted in the staff area. Every answer now has a picture next to it.

What it adds to the simple assessment:

1. A photo per area, captured as you assess it
2. Proof of conditions that holds up to an inspector, not just a written claim
3. A visual baseline to compare against at the next review

Why it works: A written assessment says the plan poster is displayed; a photo shows it. When the assessment is reviewed next year, the photos also show what changed. And because the photo step sits with its area, the evidence files itself against the right risk instead of landing in a camera roll.

Steps included:

• The 10 assessment areas, each a group of 3 prompts
• 10 photo steps, one per area: the hazard or the control in place, captured at the time

How to pick the right version

You don't need to know our product to choose. Every version here is the same 10-area assessment; the additions change who can run it and what the record proves.

Do other people run the assessment?

If you run it yourself and know the method, the plain steps are enough: #1. The moment a manager who isn't a security specialist does it, the guidance needs to be on screen next to each area: #2.

Do you need photo proof?

A written assessment meets the duty; photos show the actual condition of each area. If a written record is enough, #1 or #2. If you want the access points, the deterrents, and the response plan on camera next to their answers, #3.

Need both? Open the version that matters most in the playground and add the other's steps. That is how the product works anyway: every option here is the same assessment with steps added.

Related workflows

• Fire risk assessment - the evacuation and escape-route side overlaps
• Violence risk assessment - aggression and security incidents
• Lone working risk assessment - staff safety when alone

Conclusion

Martyn's Law makes preparedness a duty for qualifying venues, and the assessment is how you record that you've thought it through and trained your team. Every version above is the same 10 areas security guidance expects addressed, each a group of three prompts; the additions put guidance or a photo inside every area's group. Pick the one your business needs and build on it in the playground.

→ Build your own Martyn's Law risk assessment on Pilla.