The Fire Safety Bill has had a successful Second Reading in the House of Commons during which James Brokenshire (the Minister of State at the Home Office) focused on the tragic Grenfell Tower fire and stressed that “the Government is resolute in its commitment to ensure that events of this kind are never repeated.”
The Government is proposing to apply the new safety regime initially to all multi-occupied residential buildings of at least 18 metres, or more than six storeys (buildings “in scope”), but this can be extended to other premises.
When considering the implications of your fire risk assessment you as the client need to be aware of the potential of the consequences, and that changing your assessor just because of the comments within your assessment is not a really sensible way forwards either.
As the Fire Safety Order was never intended to apply to domestic premises, it is perhaps surprising that over a quarter of all prosecutions brought under the Order since 2009 involve an element of domestic living accommodation.
In the current climate of site support for multiple system types and multiple disciplines it is vitally important that the client come end user is fully aware of the responsibilities of their incumbent contractor(s) who service and support the life safety systems within their building. The cost of this support must not be the principal…
Cladding previously deemed safer than that used at Grenfell Tower burned almost as rapidly as the aluminium and plastic panels blamed for the disaster. Read the full article on the BBC website >
The BBC has reported that a cladding company manager suggested using a cheaper material for the Grenfell Tower refurbishment, according to a 2013 email seen by the inquiry looking into the Grenfell disaster.
Three firms ordered to pay fines totalling £670,000 after admitting fire safety failings at a building used for student accommodation in Leeds.
With the current appetite for equipment being both smaller and portable, what consideration is being given within the fire risk assessment to the use of battery supported equipment be this, mobile phones (and chargers per say) through to mobility scooters, tools and other work-related items. Rules and regulations here are muddy and unlikely to fall…
A court’s heard firefighters called to a block of flats in Douglas found escape routes blocked and safety systems poorly maintained. Atholville Management Ltd appeared before magistrates at Douglas courthouse. Company director George Graham Christopher Shaw, who lives in one of the apartments on Castle Drive, pleaded guilty to a total of nine breaches of…