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Fire Safety in blocks of flats | Relevant Legislation Pt 2 - Housing Act 2004
The legislation surrounding fire safety in blocks of flats can seem to be too much to read and take on board. However, it is essential that anyone building, designing or operating a block of flats has an understanding of the legal requirements. Last week, we looked at the Building Regulations, this week we will examine the Housing Act 2004 and next week, the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005.
Fire Safety in blocks of flats | Relevant Legislation Pt 1 - Building Regulations
It can seem an onerous and somewhat tedious task to keep up to date with fire safety legislation that may affect your premises, but far from being a waste of time, it can prove invaluable to the owners and managers of blocks of flats to know how the law relating to those buildings can impact upon continuing fire safety. Certainly, the awareness can help to save lives and avoid the loss of property and revenue. This blog aims to assist by bringing together the relevant legislation, as of March 2014. The first part looks at the Building Regulations 2010.
Fire Safety in Blocks of Flats | Changes in fire safety provision
Changes to building standards and advances in the design of blocks of flats have meant that not only standards of fire safety have changed. In many cases, the means of protection themselves have altered over time. Benchmark standards outlining fire safety in blocks of flats have been in place for decades and, although they have been updated and renewed, the basis remains valid. It would be impractical to assess older blocks against some of the standards now in place for new builds; however, the standards can be used to assess the validity of the fire protection level offered and to suggest new solutions.
Fire Safety in blocks of flats | Fight fire with fire safety
When considering what fire safety measures are needed in a purpose-built block of flats, or a renovated new purpose block, it is essential to be sure you are fulfilling all fire safety requirements required by law and to preserve life safety within the building. Each building should have a fire prevention design as individual as the build itself and while it is not possible to advise specifically through this medium, this blog will attempt to give an overview of some of the potential fire safety measures which may help make a building fire safe.
Fire Safety in blocks of flats | Fire detection and alarm systems
It would be considered uncommon to have fire alarm systems installed into communal areas of purpose-built blocks of flats. The reasoning behind this ranges from the usual lack of the building being ‘manned’ by a member of staff and the wish to avoid a full-scale evacuation of the whole building, where the ‘stay put’ policy of non-evacuation (except for those in the flat of fire origin) is in place.
An example of an exception to this general rule would be that of sheltered housing, where in some cases, communal areas have smoke and fire detection and alarms. However, even in this case, it is usual for compartmentation of the individual flats and communal areas to take precedence and for the stay put policy to be used in preference.
The management of a building wide fire-alarm system in circumstances where residents of the flats would have control over the system is impractical. The risks involved relating to the disablement of the system when the alarm is accurate or the full-scale evacuation of the building, where it...
