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What are the Fire Safety (England) Regulations 2022?
Regulations made under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005, introduced in response to the Grenfell Tower Inquiry's Phase 1 recommendations. They apply in England to residential buildings with two or more sets of domestic premises, and the duties increase with building height.
What do the Regulations require at each height?
| Building | Duties |
|---|---|
| All residential buildings with two or more homes | Fire safety instructions for residents; information about fire doors |
| A storey over 11 metres high | All of the above, plus communal fire door checks every 3 months and flat entrance door checks every 12 months (best endeavours) |
| 18 metres or more, or seven storeys or more | All of the above, plus floor plans and building plans, external wall information, a secure information box, wayfinding signage and monthly checks of lifts and essential firefighting equipment |
What applies to every block of flats?
Residents must be given fire safety instructions, including how to report a fire and what to do when a fire occurs, and told that fire doors should be kept shut, that self-closers must not be tampered with, and that damage or faults must be reported.
What applies where a storey is over 11 metres high?
Fire door checks: communal fire doors every three months and flat entrance doors every twelve months, on a best endeavours basis. What each check involves and who can do it is covered in Fire Door Regulations.
What applies to high-rise residential buildings?
- Floor plans and a single-page building plan sent electronically to the fire and rescue service, with copies in the secure information box
- Information about the design and materials of the external walls, sent to the fire and rescue service
- A secure information box holding the responsible person's details and the plans
- Wayfinding signage showing floor and flat numbers, visible in low light
- Monthly checks of firefighting lifts and essential firefighting equipment, with faults not fixed within 24 hours reported to the fire and rescue service
Do the checks need recording?
The Regulations do not expressly require a written record, but government guidance says Responsible Persons should keep evidence of the checks and of attempts to access flat entrance doors. A fire door inspection provides an independent record with photographs of defects. For the related law on flat entrance doors and external walls, see Fire Safety Act 2021.