Fire Risk Assessment - Record Your Findings

Fire Risk Assessment
Step Four: Record Your Findings

As stated earlier in this process, if you have five employees or more you are required to record the findings of your Fire Risk Assessment. Personally I would record it anyway, it is good practice.

I have already provided some general advice on how I think the
Fire Risk Assessment is best recorded. The main point of which is that you can use the Fire Risk Assessment Form that I have provided. You will need Adobe Reader to download the Form - if you do not already have Reader you can download it HERE. If yours is a very small business, your method of recording might only be a few pieces of paper. You have taken the trouble to go through the Fire Risk Assessment process, so it is worth spending a bit longer to provide the proof of your labours, which will be very handy if the Fire Authorities ever ask to see your Fire Risk Assessment, which they very well might.

What you find out through doing your Fire Risk Assessment will determine what other actions you now need to take. This will include instruction and training for staff, creating or revising your Emergency Plan and maintenance and testing of alarm systems and fire fighting equipment. So there is actually a little more to this section than just recording your findings.

Emergency Plans

Depending how large or small your organisation is, your Emergency Plan could be a fairly brief statement in your Fire Risk Assessment, and Fire Action notices on the walls, or it may need to be a separate document, with a lot more detailed instruction and records.

Whatever form your Emergency Plan takes, you do need to have one written down in some form. The main point of this is to set out clearly the action everyone needs to take in the event of a fire. It might include details of people with special duties or responsibilities and what their roles are.

The things you find out through your Fire Risk Assessment will feed directly into your Emergency Plan.

Instruction and Information

The Regulatory Reform Order (the Act that requires us to carry out a Fire Risk Assessment), stipulates that you need to provide staff with information and instruction as soon as possible after they begin their employment, and at regular periods after that. The basis of this information will be from your Fire Risk Assessment and Emergency Plan, and will include:

What to do in the event of a fire
Details of any personnel with specific duties
What risks were identified in the Fire Risk Assessment
What management measures you are taking to reduce these risks
Explaining the correct escape routes from different areas
Information on the Fire Alarm System
Details of any fire fighting equipment or other safety equipment

Co-operation and Co-ordination

If you own and are the sole occupants of your premises, then you probably have sole responsibility, which is straightforward. However, if your workplace is occupied by more than one organisation, or owned by someone else, then other people are responsible for different areas of the building, and co-operation and co-ordination are essential. You may be in a building linked or joined onto another, and share a fire alarm system.

Liaison is clearly essential in such situations, and co-ordination of Responsible Persons should be the role of the Responsible Person who has overall responsibility for the building.

Employees have a duty to co-operate with their employers, in order that they can carry out this legal duty.

Fire Safety Training

The final part of this step in your Fire Risk Assessment is Fire Safety Training which is discussed in more detail here

Don't forget the final step in the Fire Risk Assessment process: Review