Department of Communities and Local Governernment Guides

The new, risk-assessment based regime requires employers to to take action to prevent fires and protect against death and injury, employees and relevant persons, should a fire occur. This was the same duty imposed on employers by the Fire Precautions (Workplace) Regulations 1999, but under the new Order the duty will be extended beyond workplaces to include all non domestic premises to which employees or/and relevant persons have access.

To support the Order, the The Department of Communities and Local Government (DCLC) have published a number of new guidance documents to assist you in meeting your responsibilities. They will give advice on most types of premises where the duty to undertake a fire safety risk assessment under the Order applies. The Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 - A short guide to making your premises safe from fire will give an overview and the following eleven guides will address the following categories of premises

Guide	Main Use
Offices and shops	Offices and retail premises (including individual units within larger premises, e.g. shopping centre's).
Factories and warehouses	Factories and warehouse storage premises.
Sleeping accommodation	All premises where the main use is to provide sleeping accommodation, e.g. hotels, guest houses, B&Bs, hostels, residential training centre's, holiday accommodation and the common areas of flats, maisonettes, HMO's and sheltered housing (other than those providing care – see Residential care premises), but excluding hospitals, residential care premises, places of custody and single private dwellings
Residential care premises	Residential care and nursing homes, common areas of sheltered housing (where care is provided) and similar premises, which are permanently staffed and where the primary use is the provision of care rather than healthcare. (see Healthcare Premises)
Educational premises	Teaching establishments ranging from pre-school through to universities, except the residential parts. (see Sleeping accommodation)
Small and medium places of assembly	Smaller public houses, clubs, restaurants and cafes, village halls, community centre's, libraries, marquees, churches and other places of worship or study accommodating up to 300 people.
Large places of assembly	Larger premises where more than 300 people could gather, e.g. shopping centre's (not the individual shops), large nightclubs and pubs, exhibition and conference centre's, sports stadia, marquees, museums, libraries, churches, cathedrals and other places of worship or study.
Theatres, cinemas and similar premises	Theatres, cinemas, concert halls and similar premises used primarily for this purpose.
Open air events and venues	Open air events, e.g. theme parks, zoos, music concerts, sporting events (not stadia – see Large places of assembly), fairgrounds and county fairs.
Healthcare premises	Premises where the primary use is the provision of healthcare (including private), e.g. hospitals, doctors’ surgeries, dentists and other similar healthcare premises.
Transport premises and facilities	Transportation terminals and interchanges, e.g. airports, railway stations (including sub-surface), transport tunnels, ports, bus and coach stations and similar premises but excluding the the means of transport (e.g. trains, buses, planes and ships).
Animal Premises and Stables	This guide is for use at all equine establishments, stables, livery yards and other animal establishments and for all employers, proprietors, managers, occupiers and owners.
Means of Escape for Disabled People (Supplementary Guide)	This is a supplementary guide and should be read alongside other guides in the Fire Safety Risk Assessment series. It provides additional information on accessibility and means of escape for disabled people.

The guides, have been drafted by DCLC in co-operation with a group of key stakeholders. These guides will be used a template so that there is a consistent approach across the whole suite. Around forty stakeholders representing enforcers, industry and users, and representing all occupancy types, have been consulted. Each guide is in two parts, the first part will explain how to undertake a fire safety risk assessment the second part of each guide will provide further guidance on the fire precautions. The guides are being written so as to be readily understood by those who have to comply with the requirements of the Order, not just fire safety experts.

Note for Guidance

The Fire Safety Advice Centre