What is aFire Risk Assessment
Fire risk assessment is an organised look at what, in your work activities and workplace, could cause harm to people from fire. It will help determine the chances of a fire occurring and the dangers from fire that the workplace poses for the people who use it.
Its purpose is to determine whether existing fire precautions are adequate and reasonable relative to the overall risks presented or if it requires reduction via control measures.
The phrase ‘Fire Risk’ can be defined as the Likelihood of a fire occurring multiplied by the Severity of the fire i.e. the ‘harm potential’ and consequences in terms of loss of life, fire spread, damage etc The harm potential from a fire hazard depends on the potential for development of a fire originating from the hazard and then the potential
consequences in terms of life and/or property loss. Determining the potential for harm requires the assessor to make a judgement on the possible outcome of the hazard. The potential for ignition is the first consideration, but thought must also be given to the number of times the situation could occur and the factors that could cause it to occur, e.g. the competence of people involved, environmental conditions and the condition of equipment. The potential for development will be affected by a number of factors not least the length of time the fire could burn before it is detected and how long before the fire threatens the means of escape. Factors such as building construction (combustible materials and/or lack of compartmentation) and contents (combustible and/or flammable materials which will provide fuel) will also impact on this.
A fire risk assessment must fulfil a number of criteria as follows:
- Be a suitable and sufficient assessment of the fire risk;
- Include significant findings and measures to reduce and manage the risk from fire;
- Identify any group pf persons especially at risk;
- Be a written record (when there are five or more employees);
- Be reviewed regularly to meet changes in the premises, technical and organisational measures, work processes and routines etc.
Legally do I need a Fire Risk Assessment?
New Guidance to Improve Fire Safety in Buildings
Businesses must be fully aware of the significant and imminent revisions to fire safety legislation – section 156 of the Building Safety Act 2022 which came into force on 1st October 2023.
Many premises are affected by the changes including small shops, take-aways, holiday lets and small blocks of flats: The main changes businesses need to be aware of are:
- All businesses will need to record a fire risk assessment and fire safety arrangements in full – regardless of the number of employees, and size or type of business.
- There are increased requirements for cooperation and coordination between Responsible Persons in multi occupied buildings or those where the occupier and owner are not the same person.
- In residential buildings with two or more domestic premises residents must be provided with information on the risks from fire and the fire safety measures provided to keep them safe
