Fire Safety (General)

Fire safety in hotels and guesthouses

On 1 October 2006 there was a major change in UK fire safety legislation with the introduction of the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005. This requires the 'responsible person' in virtually all workplaces, including hotels, guesthouses and similar premises, to adopt a self assessment approach to fire safety in the workplace.

The Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 applies to England and Wales, but there is equivalent legislation in Scotland and Northern Ireland.

• In Scotland the Fire (Scotland) Act 2005 and the Fire Safety (Scotland) Regulations 2006 apply.
• In Northern Ireland the relevant legislation is the Fire and Rescue Services (Northern Ireland) Order 2006.

Fire certificates

The Designating Order made under the Fire Precautions Act 1971, which required hotels and guesthouses to be inspected by the fire brigade and issued with fire certificates, has now been revoked. Although fire certificates issued under this Act no longer have legal status, it is advisable to keep the documents for future reference.

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Do the Regulations apply to me?

Yes: the Regulations apply to all accommodation premises including self-catering accommodation.

The key requirement is that a 'suitable and sufficient' fire risk assessment be carried out

If you have five or more employees the fire risk assessment should be recorded. However, we strongly recommend that even if you do not employ five or more people, you should keep a record in case any issues arise concerning your fire safety provisions. A record will also prove that you have undertaken an assessment.

Note: It is also a requirement of VisitBritain's Quality Assurance Scheme that you demonstrate to the assessor that you have carried out your assessment. In addition, your public liability insurance provider will require proof that you have undertaken an assessment.

Houses in multiple occupation

Properties defined as houses in multiple occupation (HMOs) are subject to the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 in that the common areas that may be visited by the landlord or others are subject to a suitable and sufficient fire risk assessment. The individual residential areas are not subject to this requirement. HMOs are still subject to the fire safety requirements imposed by the Housing Act 2004.

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Who is the 'responsible person'?

In each hotel or guesthouse there should be one person who is, to some extent, in control of the workplace. They should be nominated to take responsibility for carrying out the fire risk assessments and ensuring that fire protection and prevention measures are observed and maintained.

Although not a legal requirement, it is advisable to identify the nominated responsible person on the assessment document and make him/her known to the staff.

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What is a Fire Risk Assessment?

A fire risk assessment is a structured consideration of the fire hazards and management of fire in the premises. It can be undertaken in five steps.

• Identify the fire hazards.
• Identify the people at risk.
• Evaluate, remove, reduce and protect from risk.
• Record, plan, inform, instruct and train.
• Review the assessment periodically.

Remember: you know your premises best, so follow the guidance and assess how your staff and guests would escape from the building quickly if a fire started - 2.5 minutes is the target time. Think about how they would be alerted and how easily they would find their way out. After all, guest safety is the most important thing to consider - and yours too, if you live on the premises.

Identify the fire hazards

Fire hazards include:

• potential sources of ignition, eg:
  • cooking equipment
  • lighting
  • electrical apparatus
  • display screen equipment, eg computers screens
• combustible materials that may burn, eg:
  • the furnishings and furniture
  • parts of the building such as panelling
  • combustible linings on escape routes
  • display materials
• flammable liquids and gases, eg those used for cleaning or maintenance purposes.

Identify the people at risk

The people at risk include:

• guests
• staff
• contractors
• other visitors
• people outside the property, eg neighbours and passers-by.

Particular note should be made of the number of people on the premises and any persons - staff or guests - who have any form of disability. Guests with a disability should be accommodated in rooms on low floors where possible to minimise their travel distance to a place of safety.

Evaluate, remove, reduce and protect from risk

This step involves evaluating the hazards and taking measures to eliminate these where possible. The prohibition of smoking in the guests' rooms or replacing candles on dinner tables with an alternative without an open flame, for example will help to reduce the hazards.

Particular care should be taken when selecting curtains and display materials, especially decorations at times of public holidays and festivals.

Any simple changes should be made straight away, such as clearing obstacles and removing flammable items from escape routes and moving flammable items. If you identify something that would be too expensive or cause too much disruption to rectify straight away, make a note of the work and when you intend to carry it out. Out of season is always a good time to catch up on such work.

Record, plan, inform and train

Where there are five or more staff, the fire risk assessment should be recorded. In other cases, mainly small guesthouses, it is good practice to record the assessment anyway to demonstrate compliance with the law in case of a visit by the fire brigade. The logbook should contain details of maintenance and servicing to fire protection measures. It should also include details about alarms, detectors and fire extinguishers.

An emergency plan should be drawn up to indicate the actions that should be taken by staff as well as guests and others in case of a fire on the premises. The plan, in the form of a fire action notice, should be displayed in guest rooms and adjacent to the fire alarm call points in the staff and common areas.

These actions should include the measures that would be taken to identify and assist anyone with a disability to leave the premises safely.

Staff should be trained in the actions that they would be expected to take in an emergency and this should include all staff participating in periodic fire drills at least once, and preferably twice a year. Where staff do not speak fluent English, special attention should be given to ensuring that instructions are fully understood by the staff concerned.

Where a hotel is part of a complex of buildings (such as a shopping centre) or parts of the buildings are occupied by franchise holders, then the responsible person should liaise with the appropriate staff in these areas.

Review the assessment periodically

The fire risk assessment for the premises should be reviewed periodically and when:

• alterations are made to the structure or layout of the premises
• there are changes in the use of an area of the building
• there are significant changes to the number or location of the visitors or staff
• there is a significant change in the mobility level or other factors influencing the response of visitors or staff in an emergency
• there are changes in the management of the building.

There are no prescribed times for the reviews, but many businesses choose to review their assessment annually.

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How do I know what fire precautions I need?

The fire precautions needed used to be specified in the fire certificate. With the demise of this document it is now up to the responsible person to determine the appropriate fire precautions as a result of their fire risk assessment.

The most important factor is fire prevention: staff should be made aware of fire hazards and safe working practices in order to prevent a fire breaking out. There should be an emergency plan drawn up so that all staff know what actions they should take in the event of a fire.

The fire protection provisions will vary according to the particular premises but should include the following.

• Means of escape: in all premises it is important that there are adequate means of escape. In all but the smallest guesthouses there should normally be at least two escape routes from all parts of the building and these should be available for use and free of obstructions at all times.
• Fire alarm: there should be a means of alerting people to a fire, should it break out. See below for more details.
• Emergency lighting: in order for everyone to find their way out of the building safely there should be automatic emergency escape lighting. In some very small guesthouses there may be sufficient 'borrowed light' from street lights outside but this is not often the case.
• Signs: these should be prominently displayed to guide guests to the fire exits with which they will not be familiar.
• Fire fighting equipment: a suitable number of appropriate fire extinguishers should be provided and at least some staff should be instructed in their use.

Which alarm system?

Since the interpretation of the Order may vary with each fire service around the country, it is difficult to advise businesses in a general way on exactly what type of alarm system they should fit.

The types of system required will, however, depend on the level of the risk - a very sophisticated system would not be necessary in small premises. Whatever system is used should take into account anyone with a disability (eg hearing impairment), so that their safety is not compromised.

The Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 requires that premises are provided with suitable and sufficient means of detecting fire and giving warning in the event of a fire. For small buildings this may be interconnected mains-powered smoke and heat alarms that all sound in the event of fire.

Guidelines for small premises are that they can install simple systems - LD2 or LD3 - that comprise mains-operated smoke and heat alarms with battery back-up. Current legislation defines a 'small' property as being up to two storeys high (from the ground) with no floor more than 200 square metres in total. This equates to a floor with eight to ten en-suite double rooms.

LD2 properties must have alarms in corridors and all rooms leading off the main escape route, while LD3 properties require them only in the corridor, landing and hallway of the main escape route. These LD3 alarms are the same as those required in all new homes. If the property was built after 1990, it is likely to already comply.

Larger properties may be expected to install more sophisticated detectors and alarms, which are classed as L2 systems.

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How do I do the Assessment?

Guidance is set out in a government publication: Fire Safety Risk Assessment - Sleeping Accommodation.

There may also be a need to obtain advice, for example from a fire safety consultant or the fire brigade.

How do I record the fire risk assessment?

The legislation does not prescribe a specific format for the assessment but you do have to record the significant findings and the persons especially at risk from fire. The significant findings are a list of the actions that should be taken to reduce the fire hazards to a minimum.

You should also record any shortcomings that are identified in the management of the general fire precautions. A note should be kept of the remedial actions that are taken to demonstrate to the fire brigade, should they visit, that you are taking steps to address these matters.

Risk assessment template

Fire risk assessment templates with guidance are available for downloading and applying to your own property - examples include fire-assessments.co.uk and at fratraining.thefpa.co.uk. These should be suitable for bed and breakfasts, guesthouses, farmhouses, inns with rooms and all types of individual self catering properties, provided floors do not exceed three storeys (or 7.5 metres) in height.

Is the assessment a one-off exercise?

No - you are required to keep your assessment under review and update it when necessary. See Review the assessment periodically above.

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Who enforces the legislation?

The Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 is enforced by the local fire and rescue service (See Workplace Fire Safety for more information. The Fire Gateway website will cease to opearate from March 31, 2010. Users should continue to refer to their local Fire and Rescue Service websites for local information and enquiries). They will make periodic visits to the premises and will ask to see the fire risk assessment to ensure that it is 'suitable and sufficient'.

What fire officers may look at

As well as inspecting the means of escape and other fire precautions, the fire officer may ask to see the fire log book containing the records of the servicing and maintenance of the fire protection measures (the automatic fire detection and alarm system, the emergency lighting, etc).

The officer may also ask to see the record of false fire alarms in the premises so these should also be kept up to date.

Notices

If you do not meet the Order, your local fire authority will provide practical advice or, if the risk is serious or if the fire officer is not satisfied he/she may issue one of the following.

• An alterations notice: this does not require alterations to be made to the premises. It is served when the enforcing authority believes that there will be a serious risk to people in the building if a change is made to any particular part of the premises or their use.
• An enforcement notice: this requires certain measures to be taken within a specified timeframe.
• A prohibition notice: this requires the business to cease trading immediately until certain remedial action has been taken.

In all cases you will have a right of appeal, both informally and formally. An informal appeal can sometimes identify a different way of meeting the Order.

The fire authority will work with you to achieve a satisfactory level of fire safety.

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Further Guidance

Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 - A short guide to making your premises safe from fire, free to download, Department of Communities and Local Government.

Fire Safety Risk Assessment - Sleeping Accommodation, free, Department of Communities and Local Government.

VisitBritain's Quality Standards team has put together an exclusive package of benefits for quality assurance scheme participants.

See Fireco's website for information on their courses and products.

Business Link also provides practical advice on fire safety and risk assessment.

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