Care Home Fire Safety Policy Essentials

Currently, fires in the UK take hundreds of lives and cost billions. Fire safety is essential but many industries face challenges with this, including care homes. This article will explain why fire safety in care homes can be challenging and share exactly what care homes should be considering with their fire safety policies.

For care homes, in particular, their main fire safety priorities are keeping their elderly and vulnerable residents safe. This means that care homes should take fire safety seriously, ensuring they are carrying out risk assessments and adequate training for all members of staff. It is essential that they know exactly what to do in a fire.

Fire Safety Policies

This is a written document that includes all of the organisation’s fire safety logistics and necessities. This policy should be directly for employees so they can easily see and understand what the company’s fire safety procedures are. 

Fire Wardens

In fact, one important requirement might be that the care home has a fire warden; the 2005 Regulatory Reform Order states that companies need to have a fire warden depending on their size. To be a fire warden, that member of staff should be well trained and have strong knowledge of all things fire safety in your organisation, and be able to put your policy into everyday use. The number of wardens in your care home will vary depending on its size and fire safety needs, a general rule of thumb is one fire warden for every 50 employees/ residents. Along with this, care homes are considered to be a higher risk organisation, so more fire wardens are usually advised and needed.

Fire Alarm Tests

For care homes' fire safety requirements, they must have a L1 fire alarm system, this gives the most notice for fires, giving employees and residents the most time to leave if there is a fire. This is essential for businesses that work with vulnerable individuals; at a care home, some residents will need assistance to make their way to the fire safety point. These systems must be inspected every 6 months by a qualified professional. You should also test the alarm yourself every week to ensure that it is working properly.

Here at Fire Stoppers Limited, we offer fire safety training to keep you and your organisation safe. This is full practical training with experienced fire safety trainers in a professional training facility. You’ll even receive a certificate of completion. Click here to access the fire safety training part of our website and for more information and articles like this one, click here to visit our blog.