Is there a fire extinguisher on your premises?

According to Gov.UK, last year in the UK there were 15,500 fires in non-residential properties; offices, shops, restaurants, takeaways hotels, public buildings and more. 

Have your staff had fire extinguisher training?

In an emergency situation would they know which type of fire extinguisher to use?

Over 70% of businesses involved in a major fire either do not reopen, or subsequently fail, within three years of the fire.

Huge damage to premises, expensive equipment damage and major data loss make business continuation extremely challenging.  To survive the impact of a fire, business owners must prepare and take steps to prevent or minimise the risks.

Businesses must ensure all staff are provided with regular, adequate fire training to comply with The Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005. (FSO) 

Also, a responsible person must: -

• carry out a fire risk assessment identifying the risks and hazards in a building, with special consideration for those who may be especially vulnerable, and to review it regularly
• eliminate or reduce the risk from fire as far as is reasonably practical, paying particular attention to ensuring fire safety in areas where flammable or explosive materials are stored
• put in place and maintain appropriate fire safety measures
• create a plan to deal with emergency situations
• provide staff with fire safety related information, instructions and training
• document findings and actions taken
• review the findings on a regular basis.

It’s important that all staff know what to do in case of an emergency, everyone in the business (regardless of their role) should understand that they have a personal responsibility for fire safety, it’s not the solely the role of designated fire wardens or fire marshals and the responsible person.

Businesses need to ensure their employees are aware of the emergency procedures in place and that it is essential for them to comply with any measures to make the workplace safer.  This can form part of induction training and fire extinguisher refresher training will also be required from time to time.

Appointing fire marshals (also known as fire wardens) is an important first step for businesses. Marshals should be properly trained as they are responsible for checking the fire precautions and ensuring that the fire risk assessments are up to date.  Good fire training programmes can have a huge impact on reducing risk and damage from fire in the workplace. Extinguishing a small fire with a portable fire extinguisher could be the difference between a small incident and a full-scale disaster, which could affect the ongoing viability of your business.

Our certificated fire extinguisher training courses (and those for Fire Wardens and Fire Marshals) include classroom-based learning and delegates can experience hands-on learning to use fire extinguishers in a controlled environment, our gas fired training rig provides safe, yet realistic live fire extinguisher training for course participants. There are open course dates available for fire extinguisher training in Walsall, or we can come to you. 

Back on-site regular fire drills are a good idea to give staff an opportunity to practise the skills they have learned.

For a business that does not comply with The Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005, unlimited fines and up to two years in prison are the ultimate penalties for serious breaches of the order.

Are you compliant?

To help ensure you are doing all you can to comply with the law, please checkout our free online questionnaire or give us a call on 01543 372888.