Fire risk assessment is an organised look at what, in your work activities and workplace, could cause harm to people from fire. It will help determine the chances of a fire occurring and the dangers from a fire that the workplace poses for the people who use it.
Its purpose is to determine whether existing fire precautions are adequate and reasonable relative to the overall risks presented or if it requires reduction via control measures.
The process of fire risk assessment involves the systematic evaluation of the factors that determine the hazard from fire, the likelihood that there will be a fire and the consequences if one were to occur.
The harm potential from a fire hazard depends on the potential for development of a fire originating from the hazard and then the potential consequences in terms of life and/or property loss.
Determining the potential for harm requires the assessor to make a judgment on the possible outcome of the hazard.
The potential for ignition is the first consideration, but thought must also be given to the number of times the situation could occur and the factors that could cause it to occur, e.g. the competence of people involved, environmental conditions and the condition of equipment.
The potential for development will be affected by a number of factors not least the length of time the fire could burn before it is detected and how long before the fire threatens the means of escape.
Factors such as building construction (combustible materials and/or lack of compartmentation) and contents (combustible and/or flammable materials which will provide fuel) will also impact on this.
Since the introduction of the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005, fire risk assessment has become a legal requirement as well as the most important undertaking within a building as regards to fire risk. The changes in the legislation places the accountability for fire safety upon the person (or persons) responsible for the building in question, this can be the building owner, the employer, the managing agents, an appointed person or a combination of one or more of these.
There are no specific time periods in law for how often fire risk assessments must be done or reviewed.
The law simply says that the person responsible for the assessment in your building must review it regularly to make sure it’s up to date.
They must review it if:
- There’s a reason to think it’s no longer valid (for example, if there has been a fire in the shared parts of the building)
- There have been significant changes since the assessment was done (for example, major building works or more people using the building)
- The assessment itself may include a recommendation of how often the person responsible for it should review it.
Reviewing an existing fire risk assessment can take less time than carrying out a full new assessment. So, reviews can be done more frequently.
The 5 steps to performing a fire risk assessment, as laid out by the Health and Safety Department:
1. Identify the fire hazards
This first step involves identifying anything within your property that could be a potential fire hazard. Fires start when heat comes into contact with fuel and oxygen, so this means thoroughly considering how a fire could start within your environment and what could subsequently burn.
For example, if you have electrical equipment – such as heaters and computers – they could be a source of ignition and any textiles or paper surrounding them could significantly intensify a fire.
2. Identify people at risk
Everyone within your property at the time of a fire is at risk. However, it is important to consider whether the risk for some is greater. This could be because they work with particularly hazardous materials or equipment, work in secluded areas, work at night or are unfamiliar with the property (such as customers or guests). Furthermore, children, the elderly and the disabled are particularly vulnerable in the event of a fire.
3. Evaluate, remove or reduce the risks
After completing steps one and two, you must thoroughly evaluate the results, analysing the hazards present within your environment and the people who are at risk. You should then think about how best to completely remove or significantly reduce the fire risks you have found. This includes implementing safety precautions, such as removing piles of waste, conducting PAT testing and arranging for fire alarm system and fire extinguisher installation.
4 Record, plan and train
If your business has 5 or more employees or has a licence, your fire risk assessment must be kept as a written record – detailing all fire hazards and the measures that have been taken to reduce them.
Following this, you must make clear, complete plans of what would happen in the event of a fire – including planning escape routes – and make sure everyone is informed of these processes and adequately trained.
5. Review
Finally, your fire risk assessment should be regularly and periodically reviewed, updating the records if necessary. Additionally, if you identify any significant changes, you should reassess your risk assessment and fire evacuation plans, informing and re-training staff where necessary.
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