This is the first of a three-part series, in conjunction with Audiebant, looking at the implications for retailers from the impending Martyn’s Law. What actions do they need to consider in order to address its implementation within the UK.
The one technology that is currently being overlooked by retailers with their employee protection solutions, and which could play a vitally important role in addressing Martyn’s Law, is good old audio. It is very much seen as something from yesteryear, but it has incredible cut-through in today’s world where people are glued to digital screens.
When security technology firm Audiebant undertook work with the NHS to address patient communications in hospitals, it found staff were pressured and patients impatient. When it introduced a mix of calming music along with regular audio messages and updates, it proved incredibly successful in de-stressing the environment.
Traditionally in medical environments communications have been a mix of leaflets and posters along with the addition, more recently, of digital screens. But none of these had been providing any cut-through. While the paper-based communications are largely ignored the digital screens might attract 0.5% of a person’s attention, whereas the remaining 99.5% is focused on their own mobile devices.
In stark contrast to these ignored communication channels, Audiebant found audio was a powerful medium and the perfect vehicle for delivering relevant messages to audiences. The reality is people do listen to audio announcements – whether that is in a hospital, at an airport, or on a train. It is a very efficient way to pull people away from their mobile phones.
A major upside of using audio in the retail sector is that most retailers have some sort of audio system already in place with speakers located around their premises. These are most frequently used for playing background music and for distributing the odd message – most likely to announce that the store will be closing in 15 minutes. However, these basic systems can be used for so much more by retailers and can represent an important part of their safety procedures for protecting employees and customers.
When we talk about the likes of large retailers, including John Lewis and Selfridges, with their sizeable buildings across various floors and numerous exits, they typically have speakers liberally scattered around. But to leverage maximum value from these bits of kit, they need to be used on a zoned basis. It is not an onerous or expensive process to convert retailers’ typical speaker infrastructure into a zoned system through which different public information messages can be delivered and which would make a huge difference to the safety of staff and the general public.
With different zones, retailers can send different messages to various areas simultaneously. So, if a large store or a shopping centre was to go into a lockdown-type mode amid a major incident then, it is possible to send a message to external speakers telling people to go back inside the building while the internal messages are telling people to stay where they are or otherwise guiding them to safety. When involving multiple buildings, it is possible to lockdown one property while getting people out of another one through zoned messages, using AI-powered multi-directional and multi-layered messaging systems.
This uses audio and other technologies to enable different messages to be sent live to different customers or staff on different levels or in different zones, for instance, guiding customers away from danger or multi-faceted evacuations in the event of an incident. The latest emerging technologies mean existing PA systems can easily be upgraded into zoned and automated multi-lingual systems to enable all customers and staff, wherever they are, to receive the right instructions at the right time, thus reducing casualties and potentially saving lives.
Such initiatives are fully supported by the police and Counter Terrorism agencies who spent two years investigating the most effective form of moving people to safety during the evacuation of a building and utilising safe zones. They found that the best form is audio within a zoned environment.
Under the new Terrorism (Protection of Premises) Bill, better known as Martyn’s Law, which came onto the statute books earlier this year, staff at all UK venues or units with a capacity of more than 200 people now need to undergo evacuation training, and sites with more than 800 people also need extra measures such as security staff. Businesses in the first category will have to put in place procedures to reduce harm to the public in the event of an attack. These include training employees to lock doors, close shutters, and identify a safe route from the premises.
The legislation is a landmark step in strengthening public safety across the UK and applies to a wide range of premises and events. Figen Murray OBE is the lead campaigner for Martyn’s Law, after the death of her son, Martyn Hett, who was one of 22 people killed in the Manchester Arena bombing in 2017.
She said: “Martyn’s Law is a piece of legislation that mandates that venues have to keep customers and staff safe from terrorist attacks, so that every member of staff, from the CEO to the cleaning person, knows how to lockdown a building, how to evacuate, how to invacuate and how to communicate to keep themselves, their customers and staff safe.”
It puts an onus on premises, following recent attacks, to demonstrate that all four of these tenets of the act have been fully met to avoid the risk of potential compensation claims, with retailers and businesses fearing possible negligence liability.
The second category for premises with a larger capacity are required to put in place stronger measures, such as installing equipment, including CCTV and ground-breaking new technology, such as Audiebant’s AI-powered multi-directional and multi-layered messaging system. This uses audio and other technologies to enable different messages to be sent live to different customers or staff on different levels or in different zones, for instance, guiding customers away from danger or multi-faceted evacuations in the event of an incident, providing peace of mind for retailers, customers and staff.
Part two will follow next week.
Supported by:
https://www.retailinsider.com/2025/06/audio-remains-overlooked/