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Competency matters


a type of ‘pick and mix’ approach – allowing roles and tasks to be professionally defined and assessed.


Assessment methods


Levels of achievement follow the UK Regulated Qualifications Framework (RQF) in principle rather than prescription, and have awards that recognise learning, experience and practice that generally accumulate to represent the different responsibilities undertaken in the workplace. These qualifications are often associated with national occupational standards, including the replaced fire National Vocational Qualification and regulated qualifications such as City and Guilds, to demonstrate qualification from entry into work and before undergraduate degree education.


Assessment methodologies are also outlined based on practical outcomes that involve use of understanding and knowledge, being able to exercise judgement, recognising key principles, as well as acting ethically, morally and in accord with recognised technical considerations. This is followed by advice on recording and maintaining skills with continuous personal development – an area now seen by many as suitable for mandatory compliance and public registration. Many fire subjects are explained using curriculums for each of the core areas. The approach accords an element of national compatibility by endeavouring to create common content which in turn can be matched with levels of achievement supporting training, assessment and recording. Once again, the idea is to retain adaptability within limits, in order to avoid prescribing how delivery is made, and to embrace what exists and allow innovation in training development. This is important, because in practice


the range of users and uses is extensive, whether it is bricklayers building a fire compartment wall, ventilation contractors designing and installing fire extraction systems, fire engineers calculating thermal load and protection, or designers specifying insulation products. It was essential to cater for a wide user spectrum – especially during design and construction – while avoiding over complication and prescription, and maintaining a principled focus to secure a fire safe building. Additionally, once it is occupied, a building


that may last more than 100 years is subject to human interactions and behaviour of all kinds with factors such as health, unplanned use and misuse, additions, adaptations and countless other variations impacting on the fire safety integrity.


Auditable competency


Accepting these variables, the curriculums help pave the way towards organising fire competency into auditable processes and schemes. They provide context, showing how one part of fire competency can be underpinned and associated with the holistic activity of fire safety. In addition, they help individuals to become and remain fully rounded practitioners and corporate entities to horizon scan for expertise to meet demands in their specific environment and circumstances.


It is thought that an adaptable framework of this type can also be used to develop benchmarks for actual tasks and roles, such as fire risk assessor or fire safety manager. Benefits could then evolve to meet industrial or sector needs, eg having a specific standard route to attain skills, knowledge, training and experience, combined with external assessment and verification. This permits the adoption of competency that is aligned through certification, accreditation or even licence processes to publicly demonstrate the fire safety competency of corporate organisations and individual practitioners.


Next steps


Given the emphasis placed on the subject in the interim Building a Safer Future report, the next steps are important ones. Questions have to be asked, not just about this framework’s content, but also wider matters of priorities, current professional capacity, the urgent raising of standards, overall provision, ownership, intervention and regulation. Public fire safety has tragically been


shown to be compromised, and existing barriers and defences to be inadequate. Professionally competent and ethically behaved organisations and individuals across the piece remain the key asset for fire safety in the future


Dennis Davis is director of Independent Fire Advisers Limited. For more information, view page 5


www.frmjournal.com MARCH 2018 23


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