FIRE SAFETY
In the wake of the tragedy that struck Grenfell Tower in London it has not only caused tremendous empathy and grief for the victims but has prompted many of us to pause and reflect on how safe our tenants are.
Regardless of tenure we all have a responsibility to try and ensure as far as we can that our tenants lives are not put in danger by preventing the devastating effects of fire.
It is believed that the cause of the fire at Grenfell Tower was a faulty fridge – although this has yet to be confirmed. With this in mind Charlie Pugsley, Head of Fire Investigation for London Fire Brigade has recommended taking the following precautions to keep tenants safe:
- Make sure all appliances are registered with the manufacturers
- Check your appliances against the recall list
- Visually check your appliances – you don’t need to be an electrician to see if wires are damaged or a control panel is broken.
- Tell tenants to flag up any unusual noises or smells and get them checked out.
- Don’t leave fridges or freezers in communal areas such as hallways
The document below gives advice and tips about fire safety. The document covers what legislation applies to your type of property, what you can do to keep your tenants safe and help with fire risk assessment.
ELECTRICAL SAFETY AND GAS SAFETY
The following guides outline useful information that will help you keep your tenants safe from potential causes of fire.
Fire Safety for furniture and furnishings
The Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) has released urgent safety advice following the Grenfell Tower fire.
Melanie Dawes, Permanent Secretary at DCLG has issued a letter calling for owners, landlords and managers of private residential blocks to act immediately to check cladding on their buildings.
Melanie Dawes has also written to Propertymark asking them to issue guidelines immediately to their members. The guidelines explain how to identify if Aluminium Composite Material (ACM) is used in the construction of privately owned buildings and how to send a sample off for testing. Testing will be paid for by DCLG on all blocks over 18 metres high.
Please read the letter for full details of the process you need to follow, and use the checklist for submitting a sample for testing.
Any queries should be forwarded to [email protected].
