Welcome to our blog, where we delve into critical subjects that affect your safety and well-being. Today, we are focusing on an issue of paramount importance - A Guide to Choosing a Competent Fire Risk Assessor For Your Fire Risk Assessment.
This choice is not merely a box to be checked in your safety protocols but a crucial decision that could potentially save lives and protect valuable assets. As the first line of defence against fire hazards, a skilled and experienced fire risk assessor can accurately identify potential risks, ensuring your premises are well equipped for the unexpected. The importance of this role cannot be overstated, and therefore, selecting the right professional is essential.
A Guide to Choosing a Competent Fire Risk Assessor For Your Fire Risk Assessment: Appointing a specialist to carry out a fire risk assessment
Regardless of who conducts the fire risk assessment, the duty holder remains responsible for ensuring its adequacy. If you choose to hire a specialist for the assessment, it is important to conduct reasonable checks to verify their competence.
Here are some simple steps you can take to assess the suitability of a potential fire risk assessor:
1. Ensure that the fire risk assessor has the necessary competence for the task. It is recommended to verify their independent registration or certification from a professional or certification body. Additionally, they should meet the competency criteria established by the Fire Risk Assessment Competency Council.
2. Confirm that the assessor has relevant experience in conducting fire risk assessments for businesses and premises similar to yours.
3. Request references from previous clients who have similar premises. Ask these clients about their satisfaction with the assessor's work and whether any issues were identified later on.
In light of recent clarification of fire safety legislation in England & Wales, it is important to include the assessment of a building's structure and external wall if it contains two or more sets of domestic premises. The external wall includes doors, windows, and any attachments on the exterior, such as balconies.
If further technical advice is required, it must be provided by a competent person to ensure an appropriate level of safety. Depending on the complexity of the analysis, a fire safety professional with expertise in external wall systems may be sufficient. However, in more complex cases, the guidance of a qualified engineer with experience in fire safety and fire engineering, including the testing of building products and systems, may be necessary. It is recommended to engage a Chartered Engineer registered with the UK Engineering Council in such situations.
How to find a competent fire risk assessor
The individual conducting the fire risk assessment must be suitably qualified. There are primarily two ways to validate their expertise:
- Membership in a Professional Body Registration scheme
- Accreditation from a UKAS certified body for the relevant activity.
It's equally crucial that the organisation employing the fire risk assessor has robust management systems, even when the assessor is a freelancer.
The organisation’s ability to conduct fire risk assessments can be validated through third-party certification from a UKAS accredited body.
Appendix 1 provides a list of Professional Bodies running Registration schemes and Certification Bodies implementing Certification schemes for fire risk assessors and their respective companies.
It's advisable to use fire risk assessment companies, inclusive of sole proprietors, that have third-party certification under suitable schemes managed by Certification Bodies with UKAS accreditation.
As a responsible party, you're not expected to be well-versed in registration and certification schemes. The subsequent information will help you comprehend these schemes and their operation.
A 'scheme' outlines what is to be evaluated and the methods of evaluation. Several schemes pertain to fire risk assessment:
- 'Company' scheme, managed by a certification body, assesses the competence of staff and the management systems within the organisation.
- 'Person certification' scheme, run by a certification body, focuses on the individual's competence, not the organisation’s.
- 'Professional body' scheme, managed by a professional body, also concentrates on the individual's competence, not the organisation’s.
All schemes maintain a register, listing individuals or companies assessed and deemed to meet the scheme's criteria.
Our risk assessors based at 225 fire solutions
At 225 Fire Solutions, we take great pride in our highly qualified team of fire risk assessors who possess extensive experience in the fire safety sector, ranging from operational to fire safety management. All our assessors are registered on the IFSM national risk assessment register and can be found on the fire sector federations national listing of fire risk assessors.
We understand the importance of staying up to date with current legislation and regulations. Therefore, our team diligently maintains an ongoing professional development plan to ensure that we provide our clients with the most up-to-date information and guidance. This commitment allows us to deliver exceptional service and peace of mind to our valued clients.
Where to look for a fire risk assessor
If your not in our area these organisations hold registers of risk assessors and will help you find a competent risk assessor in your local area.
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