Do I need a fire risk assessment?
Article 9 of the Fire Safety Order requires a suitable and sufficient assessment of the risks to be carried out for the purpose of identifying the general fire precautions required within a workplace and buildings with 2 or more sets of domestic premises. Whilst it is the duty of the responsible person to ensure the assessment is carried out, he may appoint someone like a consultant or fire risk assessor to carry out the assessment on their behalf.
Regardless of the size or purpose of the premises the responsible person must now make sure all the findings from the fire risk assessment and fire safety provisions are recorded, this is a new requirement effective from 1 October 2023.
Fire risk assessments should be reviewed regularly and whenever significant changes have been made that would have an impact on the premises or people known as ‘relevant persons’. It’s not only a legal requirement it makes good business sense as often businesses don’t recover after a fire.
I provide holiday accommodation, do I still need a fire risk assessment?
The Fire Safety Order applies if anyone pays to stay in your property or in a room within your property, other than to live there permanently. The Fire Safety Order applies to all lets that are not let as a principal residence, even if you rent out a room in your premises only once.
The Fire Safety Order introduces a general duty of fire safety care to ensure that anyone staying in your premises is safe from fire. The Fire Safety Order requires that you undertake a suitable and sufficient fire risk assessment within your premises, to identify fire risks and take reasonable measures to ensure that people are safe from fire.
The Fire Safety Order is also applicable to the less obvious smaller types of outdoor accommodation such as holiday caravans, camping and glamping pods, bothies, lodges, shepherds’ huts, tents, tree houses and yurts.
Any of the above you rent out to others on a short-term arrangement or for a holiday is covered under the Fire Safety Order.
What is the Fire Safety Act 2021?
The Fire Safety Act clarifies the scope of the Fire Safety Order to make clear it applies to the structure, external walls (including cladding and balconies) and individual flat entrance doors between domestic premises and the common parts of a multi-occupied residential building.
Responsible Persons are now required to include a new range of areas in the Fire Risk Assessment for these types of buildings. These areas include:
- External Cladding;
- Anything mounted on external walls such as windows, balconies and fixings;
- Common areas; and
- Doors between private flats and common areas.
Why is fire safety important in the workplace?
Fire safety in the workplace is primarily the responsibility of the employer.
The three main reasons why an employer must maintain good standards of fire safety in the workplace are moral, legal and financial.
Moral
As an employer there is a moral duty to promote good fire safety in the workplace. With adequate fire policies and procedures in place you are demonstrating that you take fire safety seriously. As an employer you also have a moral duty to do all you can to reduce the risk of fire-related fatalities, injuries, and environmental damage.
Legal
From a legal perspective, as an employer, by not promoting good fire safety and maintaining good practices in the workplace you risk not complying with legal requirements of the Fire Safety Order. This could result in enforcement action or prosecution being taken against you by the local fire and rescue service. Enforcement action or prosecutions can be brought against both the employer and individuals depending on the circumstances. The fire and rescue service has the power to issue the following notices:
- Alterations Notice “if it is felt the premises poses a serious risk to relevant persons, or it could pose a serious risk if a change is made to the premises or the use to which it is put.”
- Enforcement Notice “if the fire and rescue service find a serious risk that is not being suitably managed, the notice will say what improvements are needed and by when.”
- Prohibition Notice “if the fire and rescue authority are of the view the risk is so great that access to the premises needs to be either prohibited or restricted.”
Financial
As an employer if you provide good fire safety practices in the workplace you are taking measures to reduce the potential of additional costs with regard, but not limited to;
- Damaged buildings or equipment
- Environmental damage or clean up
- Fire investigation and legal fees;
- Loss of productivity through false alarms
- Potential fines from the fire and rescue services as they seek to recover costs or;
- Loss of revenue or profit associated with a poor business reputation and unmotivated staff.
How often should fire safety training be provided?
Fire safety training is key to maintaining the principles of preventing, managing, and handling fire risks. There may be several levels of training required within your organisation or business because those with increased responsibility e.g. fire wardens, will need more comprehensive training. Those with the ultimate duty of care over everyone in the workplace may also require more detailed responsible person training. All training should be site specific and everyone within the workplace should as a minimum, initially receive training on:
- What to do when a fire is discovered;
- How to raise the alarm;
- What to do if you hear the fire alarm;
- Where the assembly points are located;
- Who contacts the emergency services;
- Firefighting policy; and
- How to know it is safe to re-enter the building.
Fire safety training is a legal obligation. Section 21 of The Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order (RRFSO) 2005 states 'employees are to be provided with adequate training when they are first employed or when being exposed to a new or increased risk'. Refresher training can take the form of a fire drill, which is already required to take place at least annually and should cover all shift patterns.
What is deemed as "adequate" will depend on the type of work been carried out and the premises they work from.
Where should I place fire extinguishers in my premises
Quick Access: Fire extinguishers should be placed in locations where they can be easily reached in the event of a fire.
Visibility: A fire extinguisher that is hidden or obscured by other objects is of no use in an emergency. Fire extinguishers should be placed in a location where they are visible and easily identifiable, this could be along escape routes, near to corridors, room exits, lobbies, stairwells, and landings. They are often also located near fire alarm call points so that someone can raise the alarm and use the extinguisher should a fire obstruct their safe escape from the building.
Ease of Use: In an emergency, it is important that the fire extinguisher can be easily removed from its mount and used without delay. A fire extinguisher that is too heavy or too difficult to operate can waste valuable time during a fire emergency.
Secure Mounting: Fire extinguishers should be securely mounted to prevent them from falling or becoming damaged. A fire extinguisher that is not properly secured may not work properly in an emergency, or may even become a hazard itself.
By placing fire extinguishers in the right location, you can help ensure that they are readily accessible and usable in the event of a fire, which can help to minimize the damage caused by the fire.
You must also consider suitable instructional signage. This signage will ensure that if someone is going to use an extinguisher they are aware of the type of fire the extinguisher is suitable for and how they should use it.
What is a fire strategy and should I have one
The fire safety strategy should be specifically tailored to your building and cover the necessary aspects of fire safety under The Building Regulations. The main guidance documents to be followed are Approved Documents B Volume 1 and 2, however PROTEXER can also use the performance-based codes of practice to demonstrate compliance like BS 9999, BS9991 and BS7974.
An effective fire strategy should be detailed and unique to the particular building and its contents. There are various aspects of a fire strategy that should be considered including:
- Means of warning in case of fire (fire detection)
- Means of escape
- Internal fire spread/passive fire protection / compartmentation
- External fire spread
- Access/facilities for the Fire & Rescue Service
- Other factors to consider such as increased fire risks present
- Fire safety management for the building
Additionally, your fire strategy should be reviewed when carrying out a fire risk assessment.
How often should I review my fire risk assessment
The Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 Article 9 requires the responsible person (the individual identified as having control over part or all of the premises) to provide a written fire risk assessment and that assessment must be regularly reviewed and kept up to date.
Your fire risk assessment must be reviewed if:
- It may no longer be valid.
- There have been changes made to the area/s under your control e.g. structural changes, new installations.
- You have had a fire or near miss.
- Findings from a fire evacuation drill identify the need for a change.
- There has been a change to the type of work being done on the premises that may affect areas under your control e.g. introduced a manufacturing process to an office environment.
- Changes to the types of persons employed, you are now employing workers with disabilities or young workers e.g. introduced staff covered under the equality act.
- PROTEXER recommends you should review your fire risk assessment at least every 12 months to ensure your compliance with the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 remains.
As the responsible person how do I manage fire safety within my business or workplace
Effective management alongside appropriate staff training is fundamental in fire safety.
The responsible person’s duty is not only ensuring that a suitable and sufficient fire risk assessment is implemented, but also there are adequate fire safety measures in place. Examples of this include having suitable evacuation procedures, control measures for those more likely to be at risk in the event of a fire, to maintaining fire detection and alarm systems as well as firefighting equipment i.e. fire extinguishers, suppression systems etc.
The Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 (RRFSO) imposes extensive duties which can only be effectively discharged by means of a comprehensive fire safety management system. This should include arrangements for the planning, organising, control, monitoring and review of your fire systems in place.
As the responsible person, it is your duty to ensure where applicable that all employees have undergone sufficient training. All staff members, including temporary/part-time, contractors and visitors must be familiar with the actions to be taken in the event of a fire or, if the fire alarm were to sound. This can be done through inductions, training courses and fire evacuation drills.
It is important that individuals are aware of their part to play, should it be calling the fire and rescue service, assisting others to evacuate, making sure all those in their area have safely evacuated, managing the assembly point, to making sure no-one re-enters the property until it is safe to do so. Delegation of roles is key to managing fire safety.
Pro-active management, such as frequent inspections and checks of the workplace, demonstrates good fire safety control. Early identification of fire doors being propped open, defects in fire fighting equipment, or regular storage of combustibles within fire escape routes will also reduce the risk of fire and/or fire spread within the workplace.
It is important that all current policies and procedures in place are regularly reviewed to meet any changes in circumstances but also to implement improvements.
