Figen Murray is the mother of Martyn Hett, who at 29 years of age was tragically killed in the terrorist attack at the Manchester Arena in May 2017.
Figen is now committed to her mission of promoting peace, kindness and tolerance in Martyn’s memory, while also working towards tangible changes that can help ensure no other family has to go through what hers did.
Figen commits her time to talk to young people in schools, colleges and universities educating them about the dangers of radicalisation and is also the force behind Martyn's Law, a legislation requiring entertainment venues to improve security against the threat of terrorism, and one that requires that all venues in Manchester have a counter-terrorism plan.
Her petition to make Martyn's Law mandatory has received over 23,000 signatures and is now on its way to becoming a reality.
She has also just been presented with the Outstanding Contribution award at the 2020 Counter Terror Awards for her efforts in stopping terrorism.
Figen will be giving a joint presentation with Nick Aldworth.
Nick Aldworth retired from a 36-year career in policing and military service in 2019. He finished his career as a Detective Chief Superintendent in Counter Terrorism Policing where he held the role of National Coordinator (Protect and Prepare).
He led the operational protective security responses to the London 2017 terrorist attacks and prior to that was the Chief Inspector of policing and security operations at the UK Parliament. Most of his career was spent in uniformed operations and included EOD search and VIP protection as well as leading armed response teams in London.
Nick met Figen Murray in 2018 and they quickly established a common aim of wanting to improve the legislative landscape as well as forming an enduring friendship. Working together, Nick was able to align his knowledge of protective security needs alongside Figen’s ability to articulate the impact that terrorism has on victims, survivors and their families. This created a compelling case for change that the government listened to and are now committed to Martyn’s Law, known formally as the Protect Duty.
As well as campaigning, Nick is now working with the Home Office and a private sector sponsor, Pool Reinsurance Ltd, to develop some of the supporting infrastructure to make Martyn’s Law a success. He is a regular media and conference commentator and writes for a variety of publications.
