What Is a Fire Risk Assessment? Duty and Review

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A fire risk assessment is the responsible person working out what could start a fire on these premises, who could be harmed if one did, and whether the precautions already in place would get everybody out. Article 9 of the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 requires it to be suitable and sufficient, which is a standard about the building rather than about the length of the document.

The five steps

Identify the fire hazards, meaning sources of ignition, sources of fuel and sources of oxygen. Identify the people at risk, including anyone who would need help to leave. Evaluate the risk and decide whether existing precautions are adequate, removing or reducing what you can. Record the significant findings and prepare an emergency plan. Then review. The evaluation step is where assessments are thin, because listing hazards is easy and judging whether the escape route still works at two in the morning is not.

Who is responsible

Article 3 names the responsible person: the employer where the workplace is under their control, otherwise the person in control of the premises in connection with a trade or business, otherwise the owner. Article 5 extends duties to anyone with control to any extent, which is how a managing agent, a landlord and a tenant can each hold part of the duty for the same building at once.

What has to be recorded

Article 9(6) requires the prescribed information to be recorded where the responsible person employs five or more employees, where a licence under an enactment is in force for the premises, or where an alterations notice requires it. The prescribed information is the significant findings, the measures taken or to be taken, and any group of persons identified as being especially at risk.

How often it is reviewed

Article 9(3) requires review regularly so as to keep it up to date, and particularly where there is reason to suspect it is no longer valid or there has been a significant change in the premises, the measures or the organisation of the work. The Order names no interval. Annual review is common practice and is a discipline rather than the legal test, and a building that has been altered needs review the day it is altered.

Doing your own

Nothing in the Order requires an external assessor. It requires the assessment to be suitable and sufficient, which means whoever makes it must be competent for that building. A small, simple, single-storey premises with obvious escape routes can often be assessed in house using the government guides. A block of flats, a building with sleeping accommodation, or anything where the compartmentation is in doubt generally cannot.

What a person centred assessment adds

In residential care and in supported housing an individual may not be able to evacuate in the way the building assumes. A person centred fire risk assessment looks at one resident's needs and abilities and decides what has to change for them, and it sits alongside the building assessment rather than replacing it.

Questions people ask about what is a fire risk assessment

Is a fire risk assessment a legal requirement?

Yes, under article 9 of the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005, for every non-domestic premises and for the common parts of blocks of flats.

Who is responsible for the fire risk assessment?

The responsible person defined by article 3: usually the employer, the person in control of the premises in connection with a business, or the owner. More than one person can hold the duty for the same building.

How often should a fire risk assessment be carried out?

It is reviewed regularly and particularly on significant change or where there is reason to suspect it is no longer valid. The Order sets no fixed interval; many premises review annually as a matter of practice.

Can I do my own fire risk assessment?

The Order allows it if you are competent for that building. Simple low risk premises are often assessed in house; blocks of flats and buildings with sleeping accommodation usually need a specialist.