How SIRV AI can support Martyn’s Law readiness
Martyn’s Law will require many venues, estates and public-facing organisations to do more than hold a policy. They will need workable procedures, better review processes, clearer records and more consistent operational readiness.
Martyn’s Law creates practical operational work
It’s easy to think Martyn’s Law is mainly a policy or compliance issue. In practice, it is also an operational readiness issue.
The real challenge is not simply whether a document exists. It’s whether procedures are workable, site-specific and ready to use under pressure. It’s whether plans and measures have been reviewed properly or responsibilities are clear. And it is whether organisations can show, over time, what was reviewed, what changed and why.
Where the work becomes difficult
This kind of readiness work is often fragmented. Procedures sit in one place, supporting documents in another, review notes somewhere else, and lessons from earlier exercises or incidents are rarely easy to reuse when they are needed most.
That makes it harder to spot missing measures, weak assumptions, unclear ownership or gaps between what is written and what is workable in practice.
SIRV AI can support Martyn’s Law readiness
How SIRV AI can support Martyn’s Law readiness
SIRV AI can support Martyn’s Law readiness by helping teams with practical operational work such as retrieving the right approved procedure, evaluating documents against expected standards, triaging incoming information, and retaining lessons learned over time.
In practical terms, that can mean helping teams:
- retrieve the relevant procedure quickly
- review plans and submissions for completeness, clarity and fit
- identify missing measures, weak assumptions or unclear ownership
- support compliance records and updates
- retain a clearer operational trail of what was reviewed, changed and carried forward
SIRV AI helps make that work more controlled and more usable in practice.
It helps teams get to the right approved material more quickly. It helps them assess whether documents are complete and workable. It helps them identify where gaps, clashes or weak assumptions still exist. And it helps them retain decisions and lessons so readiness can improve over time rather than starting again with each review.
Without SIRV AI
- Procedures and supporting documents are spread across teams and folders
- Review is manual and can vary in quality and consistency
- Gaps, clashes and weak assumptions are easier to miss
- The record of what was reviewed and updated sits across emails, notes and documents
- Lessons from previous reviews are harder to reuse later
With SIRV AI
- Teams can retrieve the right approved procedure more quickly
- Plans and submissions can be reviewed more consistently against expected standards
- Gaps, weak assumptions and unclear ownership are easier to identify
- The operational trail of review, update and follow-up is clearer
- Lessons learned can be retained and reused over time
Why controlled support matters
This is not about replacing the responsible person or delegating judgement to software. It’s about helping organisations do the practical work around readiness, review and record-keeping in a more consistent and operationally useful way.
That’s why this should not be seen as just another generic AI use case. In higher-consequence environments, teams need support that is easier to control, review and trace over time.
A practical way to start
The best place to begin is usually not with broad automation.
It is with one defined workflow, a clear set of approved materials, and a practical review of where time is being lost, where quality is inconsistent, and where readiness work could be made more usable.
Author bio: Andrew Tollinton
Andrew Tollinton is CEO and Co-Founder of SIRV, which builds operational AI for safety, security and resilience teams. He focuses on practical, controlled AI use in serious environments, with particular interest in evidence, accountability and human judgement. Andrew chairs the Institute of Strategic Risk Management’s AI in Risk Management Special Interest Group and speaks regularly on AI governance and operational resilience.
Frequently asked questions
What does Martyn’s Law require organisations to do?
Martyn’s Law requires in-scope premises and events to prepare for the possibility of a terrorist attack through public protection procedures. For standard and enhanced tier, those procedures cover evacuation, invacuation, lockdown and communication. Enhanced tier premises and qualifying events must also consider and implement appropriate public protection measures, maintain a compliance document, and in some cases designate a senior individual.
Why is Martyn’s Law an operational readiness issue, not just a policy issue?
Because the practical challenge is not only having documents on file. It is making sure procedures are workable, site-specific, reviewed properly and ready to use under pressure, with a clear record of what was changed and why. The guidance is aimed at improving preparedness and protective security in practice.
How can SIRV AI support Martyn’s Law readiness?
SIRV AI can help teams retrieve the right approved procedure, assess plans and submissions against expected standards, identify gaps and weak assumptions, support compliance records, and retain a clearer trail of what was reviewed, updated and carried forward. That fits the practical work organisations will need to do around readiness, review and record-keeping.
Can SIRV AI make an organisation compliant with Martyn’s Law on its own?
No. SIRV AI can support the work around readiness, review and record-keeping, but it does not replace the responsible person or take on legal accountability. The guidance is clear that responsibility remains with the responsible person, even where third parties assist.
Why is generic AI not enough for this kind of work?
A prompt can ask generic AI to use certain documents or behave carefully, but that is not the same as having dependable limits around evidence, workflow, traceability and review. In higher-consequence environments, teams need support that is easier to control and check over time.
What kind of documents can SIRV AI help review?
SIRV AI can help review internal and third-party operational material such as procedures, plans, assessments, submissions and supporting documents, checking whether they are complete, clear and aligned to expected standards.
Why does site-specificity matter under Martyn’s Law?
Because the guidance points away from a one-size-fits-all approach. Even where one organisation is responsible for several premises, it should consider how the Act’s requirements are met at each individual premises.
What practical problems does SIRV AI help solve?
It helps when the right procedure is hard to find, when documents are difficult to review consistently, when incoming information needs sorting and prioritising, when readiness work is fragmented across different files and systems, and when lessons from previous reviews are hard to reuse.
What is the best way to start using SIRV AI for Martyn’s Law-related work?
Start with one defined workflow, a clear set of approved materials, and a practical review of where time is being lost, where quality is inconsistent, and where readiness work could be made more usable.
Who is this most relevant for?
It is most relevant for venues, estates, public-facing organisations and operational teams working in safety, security and resilience where Martyn’s Law creates practical work around procedures, review, records and site-specific preparedness.
"SIRV helped us move beyond basic reporting into a system that actively supports decision-making". Les O'Gorman, Director of Facilities, UCB - Pharma and Life Sciences
