Fire Risk Assessment

Fire Safety Training in Residential Care Premises

Fire safety training in residential care premises is a service provided by Peterborough based DB Fire Safety Limited.

Residential care is provided for people with wide-ranging needs such as:Care Homes

  • the elderly or the infirm
  • children
  • people who have special needs, for instance, they may have learning difficulties
  • people who may have mental and/or mobilty difficulties
  • residential care is also provided for people with addiction problems

These premises come in all sorts of shapes and sizes.  With this in mind, it can be extremely challenging for the nominated “responsible person” to carry out a competent fire risk assessment.

When a fire starts it can spread very quickly.  There’s no time to even think about gathering up your valued   possessions.  The escape routes have to be meticulously planned to get people out quickly and safely because a fire can become life-threatening in only two minutes. Remember, initial practice is to move residents to areas of safety, however, speed is of the essence because, given the right circumstances, a care home can be engulfed in flames within a very short space of time. In those circumstances, it might be necessary to evacuate the entire building. Are your procedures sufficiently robust to allow for total evacuation; and have your staff received sufficient training in those procedures?

There’s no time to lose. Given the speed in which a fire can spread, it’s vital that the fire risk assessment is carried out by the competent nominated person or a specialist.  Fire risk assessments are something which cannot be ignored and left to chance.  DB Fire Safety will offer fire safety support to help your business fulfill legal requirements.

If your residential care premises accommodates more than 60 residents and has a complicated layout with various escape routes and is multi-storied, then you will almost definitely need to be assessed by a competent person with the comprehensive training, qualifications and experience in fire risk assessment.

It’s a requirement by law – “The Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005” – which states tDB Fire Safety Contacthat you need to request such technical expertise to assist on fire safety matters.

For more information on how DB Safety can assist your residential care home in respect of fire risk assessment,  please feel free to contact me.

 

 

 

 

 

Temporary Workplace Staff & Their Fire Safety at Christmas

With the advent of Christmas just around the corner, as a retailer you could well be taking on temporary staff to help with Fire Exit Keep Clearyour additional Christmas workload.

Christmas can be extremely busy time of year but, as a business owner you must not shirk your responsibilities in meeting the requirements of The Fire Safety Order 2005. The Fire Safety Order 2005 comes into play if you employ more than 5 people; you must have a documented fire risk assessment and you are required to provide adequate fire safety training for all Christmas temporary staff.

A nominated competent person should be given the responsibility for training temporary and/or contract staff in respect of the procedures to be followed should a fire emergency occur.

First and foremost, all temporary/contract staff should be made aware of the fire risks and hazards within their work areas in an effort to ensure they keep their working environment safe.

Training all your staff – both permanent and temporary in general fire safety awareness – makes them aware of all the potential risks to your business of a fire starting.

Training, will ensure that they do not endanger your business through unsafe practices. They will also be more aware of potential hazards and, therefore, more inclined to bring them to your attention.

The list below includes one or two advice tips to follow

  • If there is a fire, are your staff and temporary staff aware of escape routes?
  • It goes without question that all escape routes must be kept clear of any obstacles at all times.
  • Particular training should be paid to disabled staff, staff with special needs and young staff
  • Have your temporary staff been made aware of dangerous substances and how these dangerous substances could put them at risk in the case of a fire?

Please feel free to contact DB Fire Safety for more information in respect of Fire Risk Assessments and Fire Risk Training by calling 0800 772 0559

Nightclub Fire Crisis – Without A Fire?

Fire Safety For Your Pocket

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A nightclub owner who put the lives of staff and revellers at risk by breaching fire safety requirements at two venues has been fined £76,000! Mr Mellor (45) from Manchester, was sentenced after failing to comply with regulations at his ‘Tokyo’ nightclubs in both Lincoln and York. The York venue actually had no working fire alarm, while in Lincoln fire exits were covered or out of reach.

Mellor’s company – Tokyo Industries Ltd – was fined £30,000 for similar offences. He was sentenced on Monday after being found guilty of 11 offences after a trial at Lincoln Crown Court and pleading guilty to one offence at York Crown Court (Tokyo Industries admitted three further offences). Together, they were also ordered to pay more than £67,000 towards prosecution costs.

Lincolnshire Fire and Rescue, said: “Fire exits were blocked by chairs, tables and bags of rubbish and the emergency exit signs pointed in the wrong direction. One of the fire escape doors at the club had to be kicked and subsequently broken by a member of staff in order to open it.”

The court heard the club in York was visited by fire officers on occasions between 2013 and 2014.

Thanks to their untrustworthy and inadequate fire risk assessment on the premises, the company and the individual racked up over £100,000 in damages!

It’s not all about your safety, sometimes you have to think about your pocket too.

Don’t be the next ‘Nightclub Fire Crisis’. For guidance you can trust, call us on…

0800 772 0559

Fire Risk Assessment For Residential Care Homes

DB Fire Safety Limited has been awarded the responsibility of providing fire risk assessments for over 30 Residential Care Homes in the Midlands.

Residential Care Homes are subject to the Fire Safety Order and also inspections by The Care Quality Commission to fulfil their responsibilities to their residents in the event of a fire emergency.

Training and preparation are crucial for Residential Care Homes. Staff fire training must include ensuring that all residents can escape safely without the assistance of the Fire & Rescue services. Procedures must take into account that the residents could have restricted mobility  (either utilising wheelchairs, walkers or sticks).  Another point to remember is that residents may also have mental health issues such as dementia.

When carrying out a Fire Risk Assessment at a Residential Care Home, the following will be considered:

  • Is an emergency fire strategy in place?
  • Is there adequate evacuation equipment in place in the event of an emergency and is the evacuation equipment fit for purpose?
  • Have residents with special needs been considered?
  • Have the staff a clear knowledge and understanding of the fire safety procedures?
  • Have the staff a clean knowledge and understanding of manual handling techniques?
  • Have residents, visitors and staff been made aware of the fire escape routes?
  • Residential Care Homes must have an accurate and comprehensive Personal Emergency Evacuation Plan (PEEP) in place for each and every resident.
  • In the event of an emergency evacuation plan, is there an adequate place of safe shelter available?

DB Fire Safety Limited is looking forward to taking on the responsibility of providing Fire Risk Assessments on behalf of Residential Care Homes.

 

 

 

 

Contractors’ living accommodation – a disaster waiting to happen.

DB Fire Safety was ‘invited’ to carry out a fire risk assessment of a basement in an office block. We cannot name the building (obviously) but suffice it to say that there are 5 floors above the basement – all of which are under major reconstruction. On investigation, the basement had been converted into living accommodation for a large number of contractors working on the building.

Employers must realise and understand that they have a serious duty of care to ensure the safety of all their staff – regardless of their country of origin.

This basement was a disaster waiting to happen. There were no ‘full-height’ partition walls between bedrooms; no fire doors on bedrooms; no testing of the electrical fixed wiring; accepted use of portable electrical appliances that had not been tested. The list went on and on.

Fortunately the HSE and Fire Authority are now involved. If this was a standard HMO it would be shut down immediately.

Pub Landlady Ordered To Pay Over £11,000 Penalty

By ignoring a fire risk assessment, a pub landlady could well have been given a jail sentence because she exposed  her customers, her staff and also members of the public to extreme danger.

Carmel Heathcote, the licensee at The Harrow Inn in Boughton, avoided a jail sentence but was instead ordered to pay a penalty of more than £11,000.

The case was heard at Nottingham Crown court.  Despite a fire risk assessment being carried out, Carmel Heathcote chose to ignore the requirements because the first floor of the Harrow Inn pub was being used as sleeping accommodation for between 13 and 16 guests.

Head of fire protection at Nottinghamshire Fire and Rescue Service, John Mills, said: “All business owners have a legal obligation to adhere to the relevant legislation relating to fire safety in their premises in order to ensure their staff, customers and members of the public are kept safe from fire.

“What is key in this case is that the defendant was in possession of a fire risk assessment which specifically identified that the premises were not suitable for sleeping accommodation. Unfortunately this had not been updated to reflect the high risks associated with allowing people to sleep there.Fire Exit

“This sentence sends a very strong message to the owners and managers of premises regarding their legal responsibilities and the potential consequences of ignoring them, and it also sends a very positive message to those conscientious landlords and property managers who ensure their staff and customers are kept safe.”

The fire risk assessment found on inspection evidence of people sleeping on the first floor of the property.  There was, however, no way of detecting a fire or raising the alarm in the event of an emergency.  There was no emergency lighting and the escape route was not adequately protected from fire or smoke.

Carmel Heathcote admitted six counts of breaching fire safety regulations and paid the hefty price.

This sentence is a warning to business owners that failure to comply with fire risk assessments will incur a substantial fine or even a term in jail.

The writer of this blog will be happy to advise you in respect of all your fire risk responsibilities which do apply to all businesses and organisations regardless of type or size.