High rise buildings - firefighting arrangements: report

HM Fire Service Inspectorate (HMFSI) report assessing the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service's (SFRS's) arrangements and readiness to fight fires in high rise buildings in Scotland. It contains areas of good practice and recommendations where there is scope to improve performance.


Footnotes

1. Detail available at https://www.gov.scot/policies/building-standards/single-building-assessment/

2. The SFRS uses a height description for high rise that doesn't exactly match that used in building regulations and in fire safety guidance: we mention this for interest and don't see any implications coming from this.

3. We use the term 'firefighting lift' generically: the technical requirements and the terminology applied to lifts for the use of firefighters has changed over the years and different standards will be in place.

4. This facility first featured as mandatory in 2021.

5. Practical Fire Safety Guidance for Existing High Rise Domestic Buildings; Scottish Government›

6. BS 9991:2015 Fire safety in the design, management and use of residential buildings – Code of practice

7. High rise as defined in Scottish Building Regulations.

8. The SFRS has subsequently advised that there are a small number of sites where EAS systems are fitted or are to be fitted.

9. SFRS, Standard Operating Procedures – High Rise Buildings; version 2; July 2020

10. Phase 1 report Grenfell Tower Inquiry

11. HMFSI; The Scottish Fire and Rescue Service's arrangements for the provision of Operational Risk Information, 2019

12. Each OI record can have an emergency notes page which automatically displays when the record is accessed.

13. The SFRS's OAV programme was temporarily interrupted by Covid-19 restrictions.

14. That said, Covid-19 restrictions did cause OAVs to be suspended for a period

15. ibid.

16. Cleveland lay comprises flaked hose with carrying loops.

17. https://www.ukfrs.com/nog/.

18. https://www.gov.scot/publications/scottish-government-response-grenfell-inquiry-phase-1-recommendations/.

19. HMFSI also had an involvement in the post-Grenfell partnership approach in Scotland

20. HMFSI, Command and Control: Aspects of the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service Incident Command System, 2020

21. HMFSI: Command and Control: aspects of the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service Incident Command System, 2020

22. This legislation does not apply in Scotland where there is equivalent.

23. LFB: London Fire Brigade

24. PN633 is a LFB policy document.

25. Generic Risk Assessment 3.2

Contact

Email: HMFSI@gov.scot

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