Hereford & Worcester Fire and Rescue Service welcomes the commencement of the Fire Safety Act in England and Wales, and the Regulations in England, as important steps forward in strengthening the Fire Safety Order and improving fire safety.
The Act clarifies that responsible persons (RPs) for multi-occupied residential buildings must manage and reduce the risk of fire for the structure and external walls of the building, including cladding, balconies and windows, and entrance doors to individual flats that open into common parts.
Thom Morgan, Group Commander, Hereford & Worcester Fire and Rescue Service said: “Hereford & Worcester Fire and Rescue Service welcomes the commencement of the Fire Safety Act and the bringing forward of the new Regulations, which are important steps forward in strengthening the Fire Safety Order and improving fire safety in Herefordshire & Worcestershire.
“These regulations will impose significant new legal requirements for responsible persons. Responsible persons in residential buildings should now (if they have not already done so) consider when to review their fire risk assessments, to ensure these take account of any risk from the external wall. It is important that responsible persons familiarise themselves with the full guidance from the Home Office about when and how to go about this, here.
“We would encourage responsible persons to also familiarise themselves with the new regulations and to prepare for the significant changes being introduced. [We urge responsible persons to work with Hereford & Worcester Fire and Rescue Service to ensure responsible persons and their buildings are ready to comply when the regulations come into force.”]
In preparation for the new regulations coming into force in January 2023, responsible persons are encouraged to begin preparing to comply with the new Regulations to be ready to submit their information to Hereford & Worcester Fire and Rescue Service in time for 23 January 2023. For example, responsible persons are urged to begin work such as installation of wayfinding signage and procurement of secure information boxes now.
The Fire Safety (England) Regulations 2022 (the Regulations) were introduced to meet the Grenfell Tower Inquiry’s Phase 1 recommendations. The Inquiry was established following the devastating Grenfell Tower Fire in 2017.