What is ACT awareness training?

ACT (Action Counters Terrorism) awareness training is a free e-learning programme delivered by the National Counter Terrorism Security Office (NaCTSO) that teaches staff how to recognise suspicious activity, respond to a security incident and protect the public. For premises within scope of Martyn's Law (the Terrorism (Protection of Premises) Act 2025), it's one of the most direct ways to demonstrate the "reasonably practicable" staff-awareness steps the legislation expects.

The training sits on the ProtectUK platform (protectuk.police.uk) and runs as the ACT eLearning module: roughly 30 to 45 minutes online, with a certificate on completion. There are versions tailored to retail, hospitality, education, places of worship, transport, healthcare and security professionals. It's free and open to anyone working in or responsible for a publicly accessible premises.

Under Martyn's Law, standard tier premises (200 to 799 capacity) must put public protection procedures in place: evacuation, invacuation, lockdown and communication are the four named procedures in the Act. Staff awareness, of which ACT eLearning is the recommended baseline, is what makes those procedures workable on the day. Enhanced tier premises (800 capacity and above) carry additional duties including a documented risk assessment, a designated responsible person and notification to the SIA. ACT awareness is still expected but sits inside a broader compliance package.

ACT awareness training is delivered by NaCTSO, not by AV integrators. What Strive AV provides is the technology side of the same compliance picture: emergency communication systems, voice alarm and voice evacuation, mass-notification platforms and lockdown-trigger integrations that turn the training into something a venue can actually execute. A Martyn's Law compliance review maps the training, procedures and technology requirements to your tier; the Martyn's Law assessment is the deliverable that documents it for inspection.

Quick reference: ACT eLearning is free, takes 30-45 minutes, hosted at protectuk.police.uk; the recommended baseline staff training under Martyn's Law's "reasonably practicable" duty.