Whilst checks and visual inspections can be easily carried out by the responsible person when trained and familiar with how to do it, annual services require more in-depth knowledge and expertise in order to do so safely and correctly.

Because of this, most businesses will rely on an external service provider to maintain their fire extinguishers. However, with the relatively loose definition of the term ‘competent person’ in the eyes of the law, theoretically anyone with a small amount of knowledge can legally call themselves a ‘fire extinguisher technician’.

The risk of fire within a workplace is one that needs to be constantly assessed and managed. One of the most effective ways of reducing the risk of fire is to educate staff and promote fire safety awareness.

In this article, we’ll look at how the ‘responsible person’ and business owners can effectively and efficiently educate their employees to reduce the risk of workplace fires and potential injuries. The aim of this article is to cause employees to be aware of risks and even carry out their own small fire risk assessments during the working day. This, needless to say, is not a replacement for official fire risk assessments but does cause employees to stop and think about everyday fire risks.

In 2020 20% of house fires in the UK were shown to have started at a cooking appliance*.

This highlights the importance of having fire safety equipment in your kitchen to stop small fires from spreading.

Under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005, and the more recent British Standard BS5306 8:2012, strict rules have been established to ensure that fire fighting equipment is always where it’s meant to be and always easy to find.

The British Standard BS5306 Part 8:2012 states that extinguishers should be mounted with the handle a specific distance from the ground depending on the overall weight of the extinguisher. This often causes people to believe that this is the only way they can be stored. However, there is another option...

You may have heard the term PAT testing thrown around the workplace occasionally, but what is it? Why is it important and what does it have to do with fire safety?

When you think about the measures and protocols that are put in place to protect a building and inhabitants, you would be forgiven for thinking it’s just water sprinklers and alarm systems. After all, these are the fire protection systems that are the most obvious. Sprinkler systems are the systems that get shown in films and TV every day and Fire Alarms often make noisy appearances in our everyday lives.

But there's more to fire protection systems than simply fire extinguishers and sprinkler systems. 

A Fire Warden (or Fire Marshal) is a designated person within an organisation who is given specific responsibilities that help in the management of fire safety and the safety of building occupants in the event of an emergency. 

A Fire Warden’s duties and responsibilities vary from business to business, depending on the risks outlined in a Fire Risk Assessment.

All quality fire extinguishers that comply with the modern manufacturing standard BS EN 3, will be printed with a code that gives the ‘fire extinguisher rating’.

This rating helps you to understand which types of fires the extinguisher is capable of dealing with and helps risk assessors and business owners understand their fire extinguisher needs.

Since their introduction in 1874, sprinklers have featured relatively heavily in film and television. They have been the method of escape, distraction, flood and damage in countless pieces across film and TV.

But has film and television tainted our view of sprinkler? Do we expect too much from them. As the responsible person, it’s your responsibility to understand how fire suppression techniques work.

Under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005, the terms “Responsible Person”, ”Competent Person”, and “Relevant Person” are introduced. If you’re not sure who in your organisation is responsible for fire safety or are unsure as to your duties, we’re here to help provide the information you need to stay informed, safe and in control.

So how do you know if you’re the responsible, competent or relevant person?