Industry Viewfinder: Revisiting the approach to Fire Safety in Social Housing


In the last five years, how would you rate the improvement of fire safety in the following areas? g Vastly improved g Improved g Slightly improved g Slightly worsened g Worsened g Vastly worsened


INTRODUCTION THE FIRE SAFETY (ENGLAND) REGULATIONS 2022 In our 2021 Delivering Better Fire Safety Industry Viewfinder a significant resistance to change was shown. Since then, many more changes have been introduced, with multiple


initiatives introduced following the Hackitt review and the Fire Safety Act. One of the most significant implementations since the last study is Te Fire


Safety (England) Regulations 2022 – an important step forward for the industry – bringing about an overhaul of the way fire safety is conducted in the housing sector, intended to implement the majority of the recommendations made by the Grenfell Inquiry in its Phase 1 report, brought into force at the start of this year. Among the new regulations are the requirement for a ‘responsible person’


for residential buildings at least 18 metres in height (or over seven storeys), responsible for a swathe of fire safety measures including regular discourse with their local fire and rescue service, keeping plans and records of the building, installing signage, and a minimum of monthly checks on liſts which may be used by firefighters as well as any essential pieces of firefighting equipment. On smaller buildings, for all multi-occupied buildings over 11 metres in


height responsible persons must undertake quarterly checks on all communal fire doors, and annual checks on apartments’ entrance doors, and in all multi- occupied residential buildings of any height, the responsible persons must provide residents with relevant fire safety instructions and information about the importance of fire doors.


RESPONSE TO CHANGE In this study, Housing Management & Maintenance used the adoption of these regulations as a marker to gauge the industry’s engagement with fire safety, asking this year’s respondents whether they have actioned the measures applicable to their stock prior to the updated legislation, actioned them because of it, or if some are still yet to take action. For those who currently work with buildings over 18 metres high, the


majority (62%) had already installed proper wayfinding signage before the legislation was introduced, and 19% have done so following them. Unfortunately, this leaves another 19% of respondents who believe the legislation is applicable to their properties that are yet to action this critical measure of fire safety.


Similarly, with a high level of adoption, but still not nearly enough


when considering the risks to lives of residents, 50% of respondents were already carrying out monthly checks of fire liſts and firefighting equipment within their properties, with 33% having done so since. Still, 17% of respondents who have buildings over 18 metres high in their stock have not actioned this measure. As for the rest of the listings for this height, when it came to having


installed a secure information box, 54% of those with properties relevant to these measures had already done so, 22% had done so since the measures were introduced, and 24% were yet to take action. Of those who had prepared a floor plan and building plan, 52% had done so already, 38% had done so since the measures, and 10% still have not. Ten, of those who have prepared a record of the design of external walls in such buildings, 40% had already done so, 33% had since, and 27% are yet to. Of those who work on buildings over 11 metres high, 61% have been


checking fire doors in communal areas at least three months prior to the legislation, 32% have done since, and 7% don’t yet reach this standard, and similarly, 53% already checked the fire doors at the entrances of individual flats every 12 months, 40% have done so since, and 7% are yet to meet this.


How long does it take on average for these issues to be addressed?


26 | HMMAugust/September 2023 | www.housingmmonline.co.uk


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