How do we brief volunteers and key holders for Martyn's Law without a training course?
In short
Martyn's Law does not require any specific training. What it expects is that anyone with a role in your procedures knows what that role is and has enough understanding and the right tools to carry it out — a briefing is one straightforward way to achieve that. The government's own resources document, not a course provider, is what it points people towards.
Key points
There is no statutory training requirement for responsible persons or staff — the guidance says so directly.
What is required instead: people with a role must know the procedures and their own part in them, with the understanding, experience and tools to carry it out.
Supplementary C is the government's own document of further resources and learning — it is signposting, not a requirement.
The guidance itself offers a simple structure for the moment something happens: Recognise, Assess, React.
The SIA has said it will publish optional standard-tier procedure templates "over the coming months" — and has said in the same breath there is no requirement to use them.
What the Act actually asks for
The statutory guidance is unambiguous that there is "no statutory requirement in the Act for the responsible person, or for staff working at qualifying premises and qualifying events, to carry out specific training, learning or instruction". What it does expect is narrower and more practical: anyone with a part to play in a procedure must be made aware of that procedure and of their own specific role in it, and must have the understanding, experience and tools needed to carry it out effectively. A briefing — a conversation, a walk-through, a short written sheet talked through together — satisfies that on its own terms. There's no pass mark and no certificate to produce.
A simple structure for the moment it matters: Recognise, Assess, React
For the moment something is actually happening, the guidance offers a short memory aid worth passing on in any briefing: Recognise that something may be wrong, Assess what is actually going on and what it means for the people in the building, then React — put the relevant procedure into action. It is deliberately simple, and that is the point: a volunteer who has heard it once is more likely to use it under pressure than one handed a lengthy manual. Pair it with whichever of the four procedures — evacuation, invacuation, lockdown or communication — is relevant to the person's role, and the briefing has done its job.
Where to find more, and what not to wait for
If your committee wants to go further than a conversation, Supplementary C is where the government points people for further resources and learning — it's a signpost, not a syllabus, and using it is a choice rather than a duty. Separately, the SIA has said it intends to publish optional procedure templates for standard-tier premises, and has been equally clear that using them will not be a requirement when they arrive. There's no reason to delay briefing your own volunteers and key holders until a template exists; a short, honest conversation about who does what, now, is already doing the thing the Act is actually asking for.
Common questions
- Do our volunteers need a training certificate?
No. The guidance states directly that there is no statutory training requirement. What matters is that each person with a role understands it and feels able to carry it out — a briefing is enough to show that.
- What should a briefing actually cover?
Each person's own role in whichever procedure applies to them, a run-through of Recognise, Assess, React for the moment something happens, and who to contact. Keep it short enough that people remember it.
- Should we wait for the SIA's templates before briefing anyone?
No. The SIA has said templates are optional and not required even once published, and there's no date for them yet. Briefing people on what you already have now is more useful than waiting.
Check your building, free
Answer a few questions about who uses your building and how many people could be there at once. We’ll tell you plainly whether Martyn’s Law applies, and why.
Sources
Last reviewed 2 November 2026, against the statutory guidance of 15 April 2026 (corrected 6 August 2026).