Fire Risk Assessment Template and the Four Types

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There is no statutory template. The Order requires the significant findings to be recorded where article 9(6) applies, and leaves the format alone. What a template can usefully do is stop you forgetting the sections a competent report contains, and what it cannot do is decide whether the escape route on the second floor still works.

What a report should contain

The premises and its use, its construction and occupancy. The people at risk, including sleeping, mobility impaired and lone occupants. The fire hazards found. The existing precautions: detection, alarm, escape routes, lighting, signage, extinguishers, compartmentation and management. The significant findings. Then an action plan with priorities, owners and dates, and the review date. A report that stops before the action plan has described a building rather than assessed it.

The four types, and where they come from

Types 1 to 4 are industry convention for residential blocks, not a statutory scheme. Type 1 is non-destructive and covers the common parts. Type 2 is type 1 plus destructive inspection where the construction is in doubt. Type 3 adds a non-destructive look inside a sample of flats, including flat entrance doors and internal escape. Type 4 is destructive and covers both common parts and a sample of flats. Type 1 is the default; anything more is triggered by doubt about compartmentation.

Premises types that change the answer

An HMO carries a licensing regime on top of the Order and the local authority will have its own expectations. A holiday let is non-domestic while it is let and needs an assessment. A school, a care home and a restaurant each have different people at risk and different hazards, and the assessment for a communal area of a block deals with escape from a building the assessor may never see inside.

Using a template honestly

Fill in the building first and the form second. Photograph what you find. Say where you could not gain access and what you did about it. Date and sign it. And be specific in the actions: replace the missing self closer on the third floor riser cupboard door beats improve fire doors, because only one of those can be done and checked.

Questions people ask about fire risk assessment template

Is there an official fire risk assessment template?

No. The government publishes fire safety risk assessment guides for different premises types, and any format is acceptable provided the prescribed information is recorded where article 9(6) applies.

What is a type 1 fire risk assessment?

A non-destructive assessment of the common parts of a block of flats. It is the usual default, with types 2 to 4 adding destructive inspection and access to flats where there is reason to doubt the compartmentation.

Does an HMO need a fire risk assessment?

Yes. The Order applies to the common parts, and HMO licensing conditions imposed by the local authority commonly require one and set further standards.

Does a holiday let need one?

Yes. Premises let as a holiday let are non-domestic for the purposes of the Order while they are let, so the responsible person must make an assessment.