Fire Safety - Some Useful Advice

In the last two issues of Residentsline we have explained how the Fire Safety

Order which came into force in October 2006, requires a designated responsible person from the residential management company to carry out a risk assessment and take steps to reduce or remove the risk of fire.

The legislation is not onerous, it simply imposes a duty to keep a watching brief in very much the same way that any responsible management company will do as a matter of course, for example ensuring that fire exits are properly maintained and that inappropriate materials are not stored in common areas. If you need further guidance on fire safety, log on to:

www.communities.gov.uk

There you will find full guidance for common areas of flats or maisonettes by downloading:

• Fire Safety Risk Assessment Sleeping Accommodation.

• A Short Fire Risk Assessment form (which is in word format and can be downloaded from the same page).

• The Regulatory form “Fire Safety Order 2005, A Short Guide to making your Premises Safe from Fire”.

If you want more background information on fire risk assessment, log on to the Residentsline website and you will find articles in issues 9 and 10 of Residentsline magazine. Remember, undertaking a proper fire risk assessment is a legal requirement which will be expected by your insurance company. So make sure that you undertake one regularly and it is good practice to have evidence of completed assessments just in case there is a claim.

Just a thought - if you are concerned about the prospect of carrying out a Fire Safety Risk

Assessment on your own block, why not arrange a swap with another RMC? It’s amazing how much clearer life is if you are looking at a project from a fresh angle!