Fire Risk Assessment Guidance
This page serves as your complete guide to fire risk assessment and the accredited process required to ensure your property is compliant with UK law, specifically under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 (FSO).
Who Must Have a Fire Risk Assessment (FRA)?
A written FRA is a legal requirement for all non-domestic premises under the FSO. The legal duty falls upon The Responsible Person (usually the business owner, employer, or landlord). This includes:
All business premises, including those with fewer than five employees (a change since October 2023).
All communal areas of multi-occupancy dwellings (e.g., blocks of flats, apartments).
Any premises used as fee-paying sleeping accommodation (e.g., hotels, holiday rentals, Airbnbs).
The 5-Step Fire Risk Assessment Process (PAS-79 & BS 9792 Compliant)
Our assessments follow the structured, industry-standard PAS-79 (for non-domestic properties) and BS 9792:25 Fire risk assessment. Housing. Code of practice (for residential properties including the common areas of blocks of flats) formats, ensuring a systematic and legally compliant evaluation:
Identify Fire Hazards: Evaluate sources of ignition (electrical faults, heaters) and sources of fuel (waste, stock).
Identify People at Risk: Determine who is at risk, paying special attention to vulnerable groups (e.g., people with disabilities, children, visitors).
Evaluate, Remove, or Reduce the Risk: Assess the adequacy of existing fire safety measures (extinguishers, alarms, escape routes) and recommend improvements.
Record, Plan, and Inform: Document all findings in a structured written report and educate staff on the emergency plan.
Review and Update: Schedule regular reviews (usually annually) to keep the FRA current with building changes and legislation.
Key UK Fire Safety Legislation
The Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 (FSO): The primary legislation making FRAs mandatory.
The Fire Safety Act 2021: Clarified that the external walls and flat entrance doors of multi-occupied residential buildings are covered by the FSO.
The Building Safety Act 2022: Introduces additional, specific duties for Responsible Persons in multi-occupancy buildings.
The Fire Safety (England) Regulations Fire Safety (England) Regulations 2022 and section 156 of the Building Safety Act 2022 brought in additional duties for Responsible Persons under the Fire Safety Order.
Find out if you’re a Responsible Person under the Fire Safety Order and what responsibilities you may have: People with duties under fire safety laws.
If you have identified that you are a Responsible Person, or someone with duties under fire safety legislation, the UK government has produced guidance to help you to:
understand what you need to do to comply with fire safety law
carry out and review a fire risk assessment
identify the general fire precautions you need to put in place and maintain
We have provided links to the main guidance below alongside a link here to the government advice page on conducting fire risk assessments to help you decide if you can produce your own fire risk assessment, or if it is necessary for you to get the help and advice of a company like Pinks Fire Safety.
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List of Government Guidance
The Government provides documents on fire safety law and guidance for those who have a legal duty for fire safety in a relevant building to help them meet those duties.
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Offices & Shops
This guide gives advice about completing a fire safety risk assessment for all employers, managers, occupiers and owners of premises where the main use of the building (or part of the building) is an office or shop.
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Small Guest Accommodation
How to comply with fire safety law for those responsible for safety in small paying guest accommodation. Larger properties should use the sleeping accommodation guidance.
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Sleeping Accommodation
This guide gives advice about sleeping accommodation for staff, common areas for residents and sleeping, dining or other accommodation for guests/residents. This guide is not intended for domestic premises, hospitals, residential care and nursing homes.
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Small Non-Domestic Premises
This guide gives simple and practical advice to assist persons with responsibilities for fire safety in in small non-domestic premises that have simple layouts, low fire risk, with limited fire hazards and a small number of employees, customers, and visitors.
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Fire Risk Assessment Checklist
If you are competent to complete your own fire risk assessment, the government have produced a checklist to help people responsible for the simplest premises to complete a fire safety risk assessment. If you do not feel confident you should seek advice.
FAQs
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Under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 a written fire risk assessment is a legal requirement for all non domestic properties, and some domestic properties. Since changes in the law in 2023 all small business premises now require a written fire risk assessment, to be reviewed on a regular basis.
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If you let fee paying accommodation, the law requires you to undertake a written fire risk assessment to identify potential fire risks, act on the findings and ensure that fire precautions comply with legislation.
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You can write your own fire risk assessment, but do remember a fire risk assessment should be carried out by a competent person. If you do not have the in-house expertise, or just don’t feel confident to complete such an important task, our trained assessors are here to help.
Fire risk assessments are an essential element of fire safety management in the workplace. The process aims to identify potential fire hazards and evaluate the risks associated with them. It also involves implementing measures to eliminate or, at the very least, reduce those risks.
Conducting fire risk assessments is a must according to the law. If a company fails routine fire risk evaluation by government inspectors, they face hefty fines or closures.
Here are some tips to keep in mind when conducting a fire risk assessment:
Identify fire hazards on your premises or workplace. This involves identifying the possible source of the fire and the type of fire it can create.
Identify the people who are at risk. This includes employees, visitors, contractors, and anyone else who may be present in the workplace.
Evaluate, improve, and decide on the adequacy of current fire safety measures. This step involves assessing the effectiveness of existing fire safety measures and deciding whether they are adequate or need improvement
Document your findings, create an emergency plan, and educate all involved. This step involves documenting the results of the fire risk assessment, creating an emergency plan, and educating all involved parties on the plan.
Further information is available on our fire risk assessment page, including links to UK government fire safety guides that will help ensure that your workplace is safe from fire hazards and that you are in compliance with the law. If you find you need specialist help please don’t hesitate to contact Pinks and we can work with you to complete an actionable fire safety plan.
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Yes, we always provide a full written report of our fire risk assessment, including pictures and recommendations. This will normally be emailed to you within seven working days of when we attend to carry out the fire risk assessment, often faster. Our fire risk assessment process follows PAS 79 to ensure you receive a comprehensive, compliant report.
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This depends on the size and type of property you have. Prices start at £350 for a small premises. The best thing to do is request a quote and we can have a chat for a few minutes to make certain we understand your needs before we quote.
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Based in Dorset, we complete fire risk assessments for clients across Dorset, Somerset and beyond, including Dorchester, Weymouth, Poole, Bournemouth, Yeovil, Taunton, Sherborne & Salisbury.
If your require a fire risk assessment for a business premises that is not within Dorset or Somerset please do get in touch as we might be prepared to travel and help.