Accreditation scheme for fire risk assessors

Citation

(2006), "Accreditation scheme for fire risk assessors", Structural Survey, Vol. 24 No. 4. https://doi.org/10.1108/ss.2006.11024dab.003

Accreditation scheme for fire risk assessors

RICS is launching a competent persons scheme to accredit fire risk assessors under the new Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 which comes into force in October 2006.

The Regulatory Reform Order 2005 (RRO) legislation has a major impact on individuals who currently manage and survey buildings. The legislation replaces two pieces of current fire safety legislation 1) The Fire Precautions Act 1971 and 2) The Fire Precautions (Workplace) Regulations 1997, as amended 1999. A major consequence of this is the disappearance of certification. Any fire certificate issued under the Fire Precautions Act 1971 will cease to have any effect. The RRO also extends previous regulations to cover general fire precautions and other fire safety duties which are needed to protect “relevant persons” in case of fire in and around most premises. Responsibility for complying with the Fire Safety Order now rests with the “responsible person” In a workplace environment, this is the employer and any other person who may have control of any part of the premises. The term “responsible person” is significant when we look at liability and duties under the Order as the responsible person now has a criminal liability. In order to help the “responsible person” comply with this new fire safety law the Department of Communities and Local Government have published six guidance documents with a further five yet to be produced. However government have stated that although these documents have been written so that a responsible person, with no formal training or experience should be able to carry out a fire risk assessment, in reality, anything but the simple corner shop or small office is likely to require the input of an expert or competent person. Entry to the scheme will involve specialist training followed by a United Kingdom Accreditation Service (UKAS) accredited competence assessment and continued surveillance. The objective is to provide a register of individuals with appropriate skills and experience to conduct a fire risk assessment in accordance with the best practice guidance.