Fire safety regulations have been required by law in all commercial premises in the UK since 2005 in England, Wales and Scotland and 2006 in Northern Ireland.

As an owner of a commercial property, you also have a moral duty to keep your employees and customers safe, but you would also be safeguarding your assets and investments.

Commercial properties have seen a 46% in the past few years. Although neglect of properties during the 2020 lockdown did contribute to this increase; there has been a general increase in incidents. (source)

Here at Sovereign Fire and Security, we are experts in all things fire and security. Working with clients across the UK to provide bespoke security and lifesaving systems.

What Do I Need to Do to Meet the Fire Safety Regulations?

There are a few things you need to have in order to adhere to regulations, but we’ll go through what exactly you need to do, covering all the requirements along the way.

Some things that you’ll have to do initially include:

• A fire risk assessment.
• Testing all fire safety equipment.
• Some record keeping of checks and incidents (5+ employees).
• Make sure a responsible person is assigned with fire safety tasks.
• Establishing a fire safety point and making sure it is accessible.

Although you may need to test equipment more frequently, some of the things on this list cover the initial process of meeting the fire safety requirements. For example, you only need to establish a fire safety point and responsible person initially unless circumstances change.

What Fire Safety Equipment do I Need?

There are a few things you’ll need in a commercial premises in order to make sure you’ve got everything covered and adhere to regulations.

This includes:

• Fire/smoke alarms
• Fire hose reels
• Fire extinguishers
• Fire blankets
• Sprinklers
• Informative and helpful Signage
• Emergency exits

We provide complete and fully integrated Commercial Fire Prevention Systems and fire safety solutions covering everything from monitoring and detection to evacuation.

As a leader in Fire and Safety, our systems offer reliable solutions for all your fire detection and alarm needs including design advice, installation, service and maintenance.

Our fire detection and alarm systems include all of the following options:

• Analogue Addressable Fire Alarm Systems
• PAV Voice Systems
• Aspirating Air Fire Systems
• Conventional Fire Systems
• Gas Suppression Systems
• Video Smoke Detection
• Lone Worker Systems

Regular checks and maintenance of these systems and equipment can help eliminate any chances of fire hazards. Thankfully, we offer service and maintenance of fire systems as well. We work in partnership with mechanical, electrical and facilities management companies to ensure we deliver exceptional servicing and maintenance of their system installation.

How to do a Fire Risk Assessment

A fire risk assessment should be and will have to done for the business to start operating or for commercial premisses to be used. After the initial assessment, a fire risk assessment should be done at least once a year. You might want to do one when or if circumstances change but we’ll get into that in a bit.

A fire risk assessment evaluates what the risk or chances of a hazard and incidents occurring. The aim is to eliminate, mitigate any potential problem or future problem that might cause a fire.

Therefore, the stages of a fire risk assessment could go something like this:

• Identifying fire risks (sources of ignition, oxygen and fuel).
• Identifying people at risk.
• Weigh-up the risks or potential problems.
• Address and remove the risks, check or install fire safety equipment.
• Create an emergency plan and make sure everyone is aware of it.
• Review and update the fire risk assessment when necessary.

You can help make sure your premises are fully protected and safe with security solutions that can help monitor and safeguard your commercial property. Check out our complete Commercial CCTV Systems as well as our advanced and purpose-built  Commercial Access and Entry systems.

Can I test fire safety systems by myself?

It is not advisable to test fire systems unless you have the necessary training and are competent enough to understand the complexities of a fire system. This is why fire alarm tests are carried out by trained professionals.

Have a look at our service and maintenance options or contact us today to find out how we can help make sure you are fire safety compliant.

Each Fire System is different and although your dedicated onsite duty holder can test fire extinguishers with the necessary training, fire systems are far more advanced. As mentioned earlier, we cover a wide range of different types of systems and our accredited team is always happy to help you with any of your fire and safety needs.

Commercial Fire Safety with Sovereign Fire and Safety

Now that we’ve covered the all the regulations and requirements, hopefully you have a better understanding of fire safety in commercial buildings. Here at Sovereign, we pride ourselves on providing reliable, exemplary service; from installation to servicing – we’ll help make sure you and your employees are safe from fire hazards. Remember, if you’re still unsure about fire safety regulations or would like to learn more about we can offer you in terms of complete fire and safety solutions then contact us today. We’ll be more than happy to help!