It is essential for businesses within the hospitality industry to consider the importance of fire safety in their buildings. The consequences of a blaze in a hotel can have a devastating impact with tragic consequences on its guests and employees. It is imperative that fire safety measures are implemented; such as the correct fire protection equipment throughout the building and adequate training for staff.
The hospitality industry is required by The Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 to complete risk assessments on all businesses and provide resolutions for all risks identified. As a FIRAS accredited provider, Broadsword can provide these services to companies in the sector including hotels and restaurants providing all fire protection and prevention services.
As a qualified provider of fire protection and prevention services here are our top tips for fire safety within hospitality.
Fire Risk Assessments
As part of the Fire Safety Order, a risk assessment for fire safety is required. The responsibility of arranging the fire risk assessment usually lies on the owner of the building or the person they have appointed to be the ‘responsible person’.
A fire risk assessment must include:
• Hazards – What potential hazards were found on the premises that could increase the risk of a fire.
• Who the risk affects? – Considerations as to who could be directly impacted from a fire breaking out in the building.
• Evacuation Plan – Based on the potential hazards and people identified in the risk assessment, a plan should then be considered of how the business will evacuate these people in an event of a fire.
• Findings – Record the actions taken by the company to reduce the risk of fire including the removal of fire hazards or the additional training that staff undertake.
• Maintain assessment – Renew the fire risk assessment regularly and when updates have been made to the premises.
Fire Wardens
Fire wardens are essential for the safe evacuation of guests and employees in the event of a fire. When appointing fire wardens there are some important factors to consider:
• Competency – Is the potential person competent of all the tasks they would be expected to do? Are they happy that they understand the importance of the task and comfortable with the level of responsibility they’d have?
• Training – The company is required to adequately train their fire wardens to ensure they are aware of their responsibilities and are able to carry them out.
• Scheduling – A fire warden must be present on the premises at all times and it is the responsibility of the ‘responsible person’ to ensure that a fire warden is on duty 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
• Quantity – The number of fire wardens required is dependent on factors including the size and layout of the building and the number of guests.
Fire Safety Training
In the event of a fire, the business requires employees to be trained in what actions to take for themselves and the safety of the guests. Failure to train employees could result in unnecessary confusion and risk.
Companies should consider:
• Do employees know what the fire alarm sounds like?
•Do employees know the evacuation procedure?
• Do employees know what to do if a fire occurs?
The Fire Safety Order states that fire safety training to employees is a legal requirement. Hazard perception training is something that a lot of companies will also teach their staff in order for employees to understand what to look out for when they are at work.
Fire Escape Routes
Multiple fire escape routes should be implemented so that all guests and employees have a variety of ways of escaping the building should a fire break out. These routes should be clearly signposted to everybody and should be kept clear of any obstructions including boxes, furniture or equipment. Alternative routes should be available for people with disabilities.
Fire Evacuation Drills
After evacuation plans have been put in place and fire wardens are appointed, it is essential that companies have regular fire drills to ensure that employees are familiar with the procedure.
Appoint a Trusted Fire Safety Services Provider
Fire safety is a legal requirement that businesses want to get right. It is highly recommended that you enlist the advice of a qualified Fire Safety Provider to remain compliant and ensure that you meet the British Standards.
At Broadsword, we understand the responsibility that business owners have to comply with the law, protect their building and ensure the safety of their staff and residents. This is a job that needs to be done correctly, first time. As a FIRAS accredited company, Broadsword have the knowledge and expertise to ensure fire safety compliance for all required works without the need for additional contractors. It is our promise to you to carry out work to the highest standard and the utmost professionalism. Business owners never need to worry again with the peace of mind of total fire protection.
Install Reliable Fire Safety Systems
Fire detection and alarm systems are legal requirements in a lot of hospitality establishments. There are many factors to consider including the following:
• Are the alarms appropriate for those with hearing difficulties?
• Are there a sufficient number of fire extinguishers on the premises?
•Are call points free from vandalism?
System Maintenance
Your Fire Safety services provider should be able to maintain your fire protection systems should you require it. As part of this service, Broadsword can check fire safety equipment as well as carry out any repairs.
We are able to carry out maintenance on the following:
• Fire extinguishers
• Emergency lighting
• Fire alarms
• Kitchen suppression
• Sprinkler systems
Communication of Procedures
Businesses are required to communicate their fire evacuation plan to guests, visitors and contractors.
This information can be provided in a number of ways including a verbal briefing or in written format that is presented to the guest or is displayed somewhere they will see it.
Review Your Process
All fire safety practices should be regularly reviewed particularly when the building has been updated in any way such as the installation of new fire doors or if the purpose of a room has been changed.
5 Fire Safety Elements for Commercial Buildings
/0 Comments/in Fire Protection, Home Page news feed, News /by Georgia RobertsonIt is incredibly important to maintain fire safety in a commercial building. It’s important as it keeps your customers safe, as well as yourself and your employees. It’s crucial to maintain fire safety equipment and to make sure that your building covers fire laws.
Commercial fires can be caused by the same reasons that domestic fires can, such as ovens, faulty electrics, arson etc. However, the good news is that these fires can be prevented, and measures can be taken to ensure that the building is as safe as it can be.
Use of fire alarms
Fire alarms are an incredibly important part of fire safety as they are the warning signal to people to exit the building. Fire alarms are arguably, the most important feature in a fire safety system. Fire alarms are used as they usually detect a fire the earliest.
However, you are not actually required by law to have a fire alarm system on the premises, it is typically the easiest and most convenient system to have. Although the law states that you do not have to have a fire alarm system in the building, you must have an appropriate fire detection system in place.
Exit Signs
Exit signs are another crucial part of fire safety in a commercial setting. This is because people need to know where to go in the event of a fire. Having signs that clearly point to the exit, is crucial. If people do not know here to go, then a panic will ensue. These kinds of panics can sometimes be fatal as people tend to not think logically. It’s imperative that people remain calm when there is a fire, as it can mean the difference between life and death. Therefore, exit signs are so important.
Emergency lights
Emergency lights are also incredibly important to use alongside exit signs. During a fire, there is typically a lot of smoke. This can obscure vision and make the setting extremely difficult to navigate around, even in a familiar setting. Therefore, emergency lights are important, as they can guide people to the exit. They are easier to see through the thick smoke. Furthermore, light up exit signs switch to emergency power when it cannot connect to the main power.
Fire extinguishers
A lot of commercial buildings have fire extinguishers nearby. However, you must know how to use one in order to operate it. Usually, the operation of these is included within fire safety training.
Fire extinguishers should also not be any further than 75 feet away from each other, as people should not have to travel more than this in order to reach a fire extinguisher. They should also be stored near the exits, as people coming in should not have to travel far to reach one to put out a fire.
Fire sprinklers
A lot of the time in commercial buildings, a sprinkler system will be used. This can be an effective way to reduce a fire, or even stop a fire. These systems require regular maintenance and upkeep by licensed inspectors.
Eco-friendly wood materials for fire protection
/0 Comments/in Fire Protection, Home Page news feed, News /by Georgia RobertsonThere is an increasing demand for eco-friendly materials to be used wherever they can due to the current climate crises. Is this actually what’s good for your construction though?
The requirements of fire protection materials
First of all, there are many requirements that need to be met when using eco-friendly materials. Safety is of the utmost importance when it comes to fire protection, so companies have a responsibility to make sure that the materials that they are using to build with are safe to use and will remain safe throughout the building’s life cycle.
In any building structure, compartmentalising can make the building much safer in the event of a fire and compartmentalising buildings should be the standard practice whenever building any structure. This method can be useful as it can restrict the spread of a fire.
In order to make a wood building fire resistant, internal cladding and linings should be used in the compartments. Also, cavity barriers should be positioned in the external cavity walls of a timber frame structure as this can also prevent a fire spreading through the concealed cavities of a building. You can read more on this here.
Using wood for fire-protection
Surprisingly, wood can actually be a good fire retardant material because its properties are well-known, and it is known how wood typically reacts in a fire. The charring properties of wood can prevent a structure from collapsing. It has been known that wood chars evenly at a rate of about 1 millimetre per minute. Being able to predict how a material will react in the event of a fire can be invaluable. This allows the emergency services to be able to formulate a plan to combat the fire as they know what’s going to happen and the speed at which the fire is likely to spread.
There is actually an 18-storey timber-frame building in Norway that is the tallest timber frame building in the world!
Eco-friendly material
Eco-friendly materials can have different descriptions based on personal opinion and personal passion. In general terms, eco-friendly refers to being good or bad for the environment, but it can have complex discussions surrounding the issue.
Wood, when being used to build with, requires treatments to make it fire-retardant. A lot of these treatments can be toxic, which is not good for the environment, or good for human health. However, there has been a lot of research conducted more recently on toxic and non-toxic treatments for wood.
Treatments for wood protection have been used ever since timber was first used by man. Some conventional timber treatments would include oil or wax, such as linseed, beeswax and tung oil. These are regarded as eco-friendly materials. In more modern times though, wood treatments have been more reliant on harsh substances and chemicals. Creosote (made from coal tar), for example, used to be a popular wood sealant. It was later found out that Creosote is carcinogenic, so as of 2003, it has been banned in Great Britain to the general public. A lot of these harsher methods for wood treatment have now been banned.
How can the eco-friendly wood materials help with fire protection?
Fire Protection for New Buildings
/0 Comments/in Fire Protection, Home Page news feed, News /by Georgia RobertsonFire Protection and the Law
Risk Assessing
Active and Passive Fire Protection
Active Fire Protection
Active fire protection is the term given to fire safety measures taken to fight fires after they have started. They are a powerful and essential line of defence for all buildings. Active systems include sprinklers, fire extinguishers and automatic dousing systems. Designers should consider each system to the building using water, foam, powders or gases to stop a fire in the quickest and safest way.
Passive Fire Protection
Passive fire protection is imperative to preventing the spread of a fire. Passive measures resist the fire, compartmentalise its impact, protect the structural integrity of the building and provide vital time for people to evacuate. They are referred to as passive measures because they require no action in order to work.
Common passive fire protection installations include fire doors, partition glazing, cavity barriers and gap seals. Passive measures can also be found in the foundations of buildings in the form of concrete, bricks and gypsum plasterboard. This is also used to protect structural stability of the building and compartmentalises fires. Some measures can offer up to four hours of protection allowing time for firefighters to arrive and tackle the blaze.
Planning Evacuation
Fire Stopping And The Law
/0 Comments/in Fire Protection, Home Page news feed, News /by Georgia RobertsonAccess to these services requires there to be gaps between the fire-resistant elements. These must be sealed so that the integrity of the elements is maintained.
What National Regulations Cover Fire-Stopping?
Why is Fire Stopping Mandatory?
“Compartment walls and compartment floors (including a fire resisting ceiling) are intended to prevent fire passing from one compartment to another. Openings and service penetrations through these walls or floors can compromise their effectiveness and should be kept to a minimum. The solum and roof space should not be forgotten. Openings and service penetrations should be carefully detailed and constructed to resist fire.” (2.1.15)
“Where a wiring system passes through elements of building construction such as floors, walls, roofs, ceilings, partitions or cavity barriers, the openings remaining after passage of the wiring systems shall be sealed according to the degree of fire resistance required of the element concerned.” (527-02-01)
“Where a wiring system such as a conduit, cable ducting, cable trunking, busbar or busbar trunking penetrates an element of building construction having specified fire resistance it shall be internally sealed so as to maintain the degree of fire resistance of the respective element as well as being externally sealed to maintain the required fire resistance.” (527-02-02)
Why Should All Firestop Products Be Tested?
Approved Document B states the following on the subject of testing:
“the….product…should be in accordance with a specification or design which has been shown by test to be capable of meeting that performance or have been assessed from test evidence against appropriate standards.” (Appendix ‘A’ 1a)
“Provide…propriety fire-stopping and sealing systems which has been shown by test to maintain the fire resistance of the wall or other element.” (10.19)
Regulations and Guidelines
Why is it Recommended That Specialist Contractors are Accredited to a Third-Party Scheme?
Approved Document B states the following on the subject of accreditation of contractors:
“Third party accreditation of installers of systems, materials, products or structures provide a means of ensuring that installations have been conducted by knowledgeable contractors to appropriate standards, thereby increasing reliability of the anticipated performance in fire.” (0.15)
All of our contractors are members of FIRAS. FIRAS is a UKAS certification scheme run by the Warrington Fire Research Establishment.
Fire-Stopping and Liability
Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order
The Fire Safety Order applies to all workplaces within England and Wales with the exception of mines and workplaces that occur offshore. Every employer or building owner appoints a ‘Responsible Person’ who ensures the company’s compliance in the regulations the order stipulates.
One of the pivotal duties that a ‘Responsible Person’ performs is the undertaking of an annual risk assessment on the building which includes identifying potential features that could promote the spread of fire and the steps that are going to be taken to reduce the likelihood of those features contributing towards a fire.
In Scotland, The Fire Act 2005 applies in the same way as the Fire Safety Order.
Fire Safety in Hospitality
/0 Comments/in Fire Protection, Home Page news feed, News /by JamesFire Risk Assessments
Fire Wardens
Fire Safety Training
Fire Escape Routes
Fire Evacuation Drills
Appoint a Trusted Fire Safety Services Provider
Install Reliable Fire Safety Systems
System Maintenance
Communication of Procedures
Review Your Process
Fire Compartmentation in Hotels
/0 Comments/in Fire Protection, Home Page news feed, News /by JamesWhat is the Purpose of Compartmentation?
What are the Fire Protection Systems?
Fire Safety Tips and Checklist for Hotels
The Broadsword Promise
Passive Fire Protection in Hospitals
/0 Comments/in Fire Protection, Home Page news feed, News /by JamesFire safety including passive fire protection in hospitals is of the utmost importance particularly when considering the number of potentially vulnerable people at risk on the premises. Hospitals could not only find themselves financially liable for millions of pounds in repairs, they could also face the possibility of prison sentences and fines should they be found negligent for not having the correct systems in place. The cost of not complying with the law far outweighs the cost of installing the correct systems and should be a priority for all healthcare facilities.
What is Passive Fire Protection?
Passive fire protection is the use of fire-resistant materials and structural components that look to separate the building into different areas of risk. Essentially, they work to slow the spread of fire and smoke, to protect the structural integrity of the building and to provide time for all occupants of the building to evacuate. Passive fire protection is a component of a total fire protection system that looks to collaboratively suppress and resist fire. Passive fire protection looks to contain fire and is achieved through the installation of columns, walls, floors and doors. Each of these need to prevent structural collapse, heat conduction and the spread of smoke and noxious gases to be considered effective.
Fire Safety and the Law
Lessons from History
What Passive Fire Protection is required in Hospitals?
The Broadsword Promise
Fire Protection in Care Homes
/0 Comments/in Fire Protection, Home Page news feed, News /by joannevickersA government report relating to fire showed that 47% of all fatalities from fires in England were people aged 65 and above with the most common cause being overcome by gas and smoke. Based on this the elderly are 10 times more likely to die in a fire than young people. For this reason, it is paramount that fire procedures within care homes must be meticulous. There is a lot more to consider than just a clearly signed fire exit or strategically placed fire extinguisher. Care home residents are often less mobile or completely bed bound, they could suffer from illnesses such as dementia or hard of hearing. All of these health issues pose significant concerns when considering fire safety and protecting residents in the event of a fire.
Who is Responsible?
Fire safety measures and the requirements are covered under the Fire Safety Order and the Care Act which is regulated by the Care Quality Commission. Under the Fire Safety Order, a responsible person must be appointed to have overall responsibility for fire safety. This is the employer, owner or controller of the premises. In a care home, the responsible person is usually the care manager.
The appointed responsible person/care manager is required to do the following:
Completing a Fire Risk Assessment
It is a legal requirement for the responsible person to get a fire risk assessment done for the care home premises and it will need to be reviewed and updated as appropriate. The fire risk must show that reasonable precautions are taken against all risks identified in order to protect the safety of their employees and residents. As care homes are high risk, the responsible person would need to ensure that the person carrying out the risk assessment has sufficient qualifications in fire safety.
The risk assessment is required to identify the potential ways a fire could start within the care home, identify all the people at risk, evaluate those risks and what steps are going to be taken to remove or reduce them and include evacuation plans, routes and trainings that staff and residents will have relating to fire safety.
Evacuation Plans, Drills and Training
The responsible person must devise an evacuation plan for the care home. It is a legal requirement for this to be in place and it must be frequently rehearsed in the form of a drill. Employees will need to be aware of the evacuation plan and when drills are to take place. Additionally, fire wardens must be appointed, the number required is dependent on the number of staff employed at the premises. For residents with health concerns that will impact on their ability to evacuate the premises, a Personal Emergency Evacuation Plan (PEEP) will need to be completed outlining their condition and what action needs to be taken to mitigate risks. A PEEP needs to be completed before the resident joins the care home and will need to be reviewed 14 days after they arrive once the staff have got to know their needs. It will then be reviewed every 6 months or if there is a significant change to the residents’ health.
Fire Protection Systems
The fire precautions that have been outlined in this article so far have all come under the category of fire safety management. This is one of three precautions that the Fire Safety Order requires a workplace to have installed. Alongside fire safety management, the responsible person is required to have adequate passive and active fire protection systems in place. Whilst fire safety management is generally something the responsible person can do with some assistance from compliance manuals, the installation of active and passive fire systems require the knowledge and expertise of professionals and so it will be the job of the responsible person to find them.
Active fire systems are installed to detect and suppress fires. This can range from smoke detection systems within residents’ rooms and the rest of the care home to a sprinkler system set up in the building to actively keep the fire at bay until the fire brigade arrive. It is important that the correct fire-fighting equipment and systems are installed and reviewed to ensure that all are in good working order.
Passive fire protection systems are the use of fire-resistant materials to compartmentalise the care home to slow the spread of fire and smoke, protect the structural integrity of the building and to provide time for all staff and residents to evacuate the building without causing accident or injury. Having enough time to evacuate a burning building full of elderly residents with health concerns is going to be paramount for any care home and so it is vital that these systems are of good quality and installed to a high standard.
Put simply, implementing good fire safety within your care home could be the difference between life and death. This is a legal requirement and if the responsible person of the care home fails to carry out any of these requirements, they will be facing charges of negligence and prison time.
The Broadsword Promise
At Broadsword, we understand the responsibility that care managers have to comply with the law, protect their building and ensure the safety of their staff and residents. This is a job that needs to be done correctly, first time. As a FIRAS accredited company, Broadsword have the knowledge and expertise to ensure fire safety compliance for all required works without the need for additional contractors. It is our promise to you to carry out work to the highest standard and the utmost professionalism. Care managers never need to worry again with the peace of mind of total fire protection.
The Importance of Passive Fire Protection within your Business
/0 Comments/in Fire Protection, Home Page news feed /by joannevickersThe importance of passive fire protection (PFP) is vital information for any business owner. Whether your company be private or public, passive fire protection could be the difference of life and death for the people in your building and life and death for your business if it were to be found negligent of fire safety compliance.
Why is Passive Fire Protection necessary?
Passive fire protection is your building’s ‘first responder’ in the event of a fire. Generally integrated within the structure of the building, it works to contain a fire in its point of origin, prevents it spreading to other parts of the building, protects the structural integrity of the property stopping it collapsing and provides time for personnel to evacuate safely. These principles are achieved by the use of fire-resistant materials to manufacture fire walls, fire doors, fire-resistant glass, intumescent door seals and emergency lighting.
Passive fire protection, is a legal requirement, in accordance with British Standard BS 476. It must be installed in all non-private buildings, including businesses, schools, universities and hospitals by a qualified provider, with required maintenance checks completed and recorded accurately for the purpose of risk assessment procedures.
The bottom line is that if your building has not been installed with required passive fire protection, you are breaking the law. If people were to lose their lives in a fire in your building, the penalty is time in prison. This places a huge responsibility on all business owners to have the necessary fire protections installed and ensure compliance.
Passive Fire Protection and Your Business
When considering necessary costs to your business, some of the first thoughts are commonly the required materials, technology or tools, staff wages and important licenses, permits and insurances required to operate.
One that is generally not considered in the first instance is the installation and maintenance of passive fire protection to your property. Although not the most considered, this is a necessary and vital cost to any business owner and should be considered as one of the most important.
Each year people die or are seriously injured as a result of fires in non-private buildings. Besides the tragic loss of life, fire costs UK businesses millions of pounds in property damage, loss of revenue, fines, compensation and insurance costs. The cost of fire damage stands at record levels according to Association of British Insurers (ABI). The average cost in damages to a commercial building is £60,000. This cost does not include the detrimental impact to your reputation which could potentially cost you thousands more on top of that? Can you as a business owner afford not to give significant funding to fire protection systems?
This is an increasingly important issue; according to the National Fire Chiefs Council, there are still thousands of business owners that are unaware of their responsibilities when it comes to ensuring their building is compliant. Fire prevention is key to a safe environment for your employees and clients. Assessments must be undertaken, with adequate measures installed and routinely maintained by qualified professionals. Failure to do so could result in prosecution or worse; a fire destroying your business.
Who Should I Instruct to Manage the Passive Fire Protection within My Business?
To ensure maximum fire safety measures and full compliance of the law, building inspectors will recommend that the installation and maintenance of a passive fire protection system be carried out by a FIRAS accredited company. FIRAS stands for Fire Accreditation Scheme and is a certification that companies installing fire protection systems can voluntarily put themselves forward for. The FIRAS brand is recognised and respected among fire safety professionals. Instructing a FIRAS accredited company to install fire protection systems gives business owners peace of mind that the work carried out on their building is completed to the highest standard.
The Passive Fire Protection Federation warns that leaving the installation of such a vital part of fire protection to certain architects and developers that are not committed to the importance of fire safety could be, “viewed as a hindrance towards their creativity and another restrictive regulation to adhere to rather than a vital and highly important part of the process.”
Their Vice Chairman, Mike Wood was quoted saying that fire safety, “too often seen as a constraint in design, limiting flexibility, adding cost and preventing the full expression of other cherished design niceties.” There is a worry among fire safety professionals that short cuts are being taken when installing passive fire protection in order to cut costs and to not encroach too much on the overall design of the building.
The Broadsword Promise
At Broadsword, we understand the responsibility that business owners have to comply with the law, protect their building and ensure the safety of their people. This is a job that needs to be done correctly, first time. As a FIRAS accredited company, Broadsword have the knowledge and expertise to ensure fire safety compliance for all required works without the need for additional contractors. It is our promise to you to carry out work to the highest standard and the utmost professionalism. Business owners never need to worry again with the peace of mind of total fire protection.
Fire Protection within Schools
/0 Comments/in Fire Protection, Home Page news feed, News /by joannevickersThe impact of a large-scale fire would have devastating consequences to a school for all involved. Putting aside the unthinkable possibility of loss of life to staff and students, there are also logistical issues to consider including: dealing with the aftermath, loss of important school work, school closures, job losses and complying with investigations. Negligence in fire safety is not something a school governing body wants to contend with and so it is of the utmost importance to ensure fire protection is complied with. It is crucial that schools familiarise themselves with the information detailed below and understand the responsibility that they hold.
Fire Safety Responsibility within Schools
Fire safety within schools was previously the responsibility of the owning local authority until 2006 with the introduction of the Regulatory Reform of Fire Safety Order 2005 (also known as the Fire Safety Order). This order was introduced to standardise the fire safety requirements of all work places so as to protect people in the event of a fire in or around the premises.
One of the key changes that the order made, is that the responsibility of fire safety for schools was transferred from the local authority to a named ‘responsible person’ within the school. This tends to be either the head teacher or the school governing body; however, if any employee holding a fire safety obligation within their contract, like a maintenance manager, failed to carry out their duties, they would also be held responsible and liable for prosecution if necessary. Under the order, the responsible person is required to take general fire precautions to ensure the safety of the employees and students within the school and to ensure that the premises that they operate from is safe for all relevant persons. One of these requirements is to carry out a fire risk assessment, to identify any significant risks that can be reduced or removed and stating any other general fire precautions needed to ensure fire safety and compliance.
The government guide Fire Safety Risk Assessment – Educational Premises was published to assist the responsible person with completing the fire risk assessment along with outlining the basic fire safety measures required within schools to remain compliant.
What are the Fire Safety Requirements for Schools?
According to the Fire Safety Order, fire safety requirements can be divided into three groups: passive, active and fire safety management.
The Role of the Responsible Person
As the designated responsible person for the school premises, it is their job to ensure that both the active and passive fire systems are installed and well maintained within the building. Building inspectors and fire safety experts will recommend that the work is carried out by a FIRAS accredited company. A company holding the FIRAS certification will have the knowledge and expertise to ensure that the work is not only done to the highest standards but in full compliance of the law which guarantees the safety of your employees and students.
In terms of fire safety management, it is the duty of the responsible person to prepare an evacuation plan, appoint fire marshals to assist with the evacuation and to arrange fire drills to take place frequently so the plan is rehearsed. Added consideration must be given to boarding schools where students may be asleep when a fire breaks out as well as evacuating students with reduced mobility.
In addition to an evacuation plan all schools must have a fire safety policy that includes the following details: