Current affairs


need to be trained, as on premises they are ‘relevant persons’. Mr Briggs cited the interconnection between experience, training and skills and education (or the assimilation of information), and noted that you have to give people ‘enough time and resources to do their jobs’. Fire warden responsibilities include checking


fire doors, extinguishers, alarm panels, escape routes and smoke detectors ‘daily’, and ensuring escape routes are ‘clear at all times’. Wardens are also responsible for evacuating everyone, while in terms of firefighting and detection, the responsible person ‘must take measures’, appointing people to these roles and ensuring training is adequate. A competent person must be appointed


to implement procedures for ‘relevant persons’, while safety training is recommended in FRAs, the FSO and government and NFCC guidance. A responsible person’s job is to ensure competence, with competent people nominated in line with FSO requirements, and the ‘mantra’ should be to ‘record everything you do’, guidance suggesting enforcing authorities might want to see evidence. The FPA’s Karl Rooke covered effective


evacuation, querying what the FSO requires in terms of ‘adequate’ safety training, citing drills and tests. Briefing skills are often missed but are ‘very important’, covering precautions and actions to safeguard staff and residents, while information and instructions should be made understandable for all staff levels. Case studies allow discussions and to learn


from mistakes, with five minute flash drills held a minimum of twice a year day and night, and results recorded. Skills fade can be a major issue, including moving and handling training which should be undertaken daily. Evacuation strategy depends on building type, the ability of residents to respond and physical dependency – staff levels need to be right at all times, particularly with progressive or horizontal evacuation, and provision of equipment. Mr Rooke demonstrated the complexity of


simultaneous evacuation in compartments, adding that staffing difficulties on nights mean you ‘still have to do something – work smartly and get things done before the [FRS] gets there’. Justification is required for delayed evacuation as it is high risk, residents confined to bed needing protection such as fire doors and higher wall fire ratings. A range of strategies might be necessary,


government guidance saying do ‘not rely’ on FRSs but ensure a duty of care. Mr Rooke recommended rehearsing plans and understanding timeframes, namely recognition and response times. These are ‘significant aspects of human behaviour’, tying into building and occupant characteristics. It should be appropriate for the person in control of an FRA to know the environment, look at each person in place and update and maintain handover sheets and PEEPs, noting how to get each specific resident out.


FOCUS


Active and passive


FPA associate trainer Shawn Lawrence looked at active systems, referring to sections of the FSO relating to legislation, testing and specification, specifically looking at BS 5839 part one (fire detection and alarms); TB 203 (BS EN 12845 – sprinkler systems); BS 5306 part three (portable extinguishers); and BS 5266 (emergency lighting). If zero maintenance is undertaken, systems


won’t work and FRS response will be delayed, while unwanted alarms and occupant complacency may lead to voided insurance and fatalities. He asked how service provider competency can be verified, naming organisations offering third party service provider approval schemes. For each of the standards above, he discussed maintenance schedules and testing to be met. Checkmate Fire’s Damien Ward discussed


passive fire safety, covering building regulations guidance and referring to potential contractor and subcontractor issues, as compromised passive protection can ‘have a massive effect on fire performance’. Any building work ‘must use the right materials and be put together properly’, but most people ‘bend or break’ these rules. Regulation 38 is ‘really important’ for


contractors, as it concerns handing over the document relating to fire safety specification to the client. Those constructing buildings need to ‘make sure their building is built correctly’, Mr Ward highlighting fire doors and compartments, before detailing glazing types, door issues, different types of door construction, common problems and long term maintenance


William Roszczyk is editor of Fire & Risk Management. For more information, view page 5


www.frmjournal.com JULY/AUGUST 2018 55


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