General Information
All premises that employ persons, with a few exceptions, and including offices, shops, railway premises, hotels and factories are subject to the Fire Precautions (Workplace) Regulations 1997 as amended by the Fire Precautions (Workplace) (Amendment) Regulations 1999.
All offices, shops, railway premises, hotels and factories that require a Fire Certificate are subject to the Fire Precautions act 1971. Offices, shops, railway premises, or factories require a Fire Certificate, if, more than 20 persons are employed in the building or more than 10 persons are employed anywhere other than on the ground floor. If you own a hotel or boarding house and provide sleeping accommodation for more than six persons, being guests or staff, or this sleeping accommodation is above the first floor or below the ground floor you require a Fire Certificate.
All you are required to do is to apply for a Fire Certificate to your local Fire and Rescue Service on form FP1. Until you are issued with a Fire Certificate you are obliged to carry out certain interim duties which are detailed by the Fire Service. The building will be eventually inspected and if the fire precautions are below a necessary standard, you will be required to be carried out certain works before a Fire Certificate can be issued.
This has produced a legislative overlap of fire safety requirements and it is hoped that this overlap will be resolved in future legislation hopefully when the proposed Fire Safety Act is placed on the statute book.
When a Fire Certificate is issued the owner or occupier is required to provide and maintain four principle items:
Means of escape from fire with which the premises are provided
A means of escape is designed using a code of practice and in the case of existing offices it is "Fire Precautions in Offices and Shops" issued by the Home Office. In new buildings an approved document is used and all structural fire precautions should be resolved at building control stage, before you take occupancy. However, you may have to provide portable fire extinguishers depending on the fire risks you introduce when you take occupancy. Further advice can be obtained from the Fire and Rescue Service usually in the form of "Notes for Guidance" on any fire precaution matters.
Other means for securing the means of escape
Other means for securing the means of escape are for example, the provision of emergency lighting. If the premises are used at times, and the mains electricity was to fail, escape routes would not become impassable due to the darkness. Emergency lighting ensures a minimum level of light will always be present no matter what circumstances prevail. Another example is the provision of fire exit signs to indicate the path to safety. Also other signage to ensure the means of escape always remains clear of obstructions.
Means of fighting fires
All premises should be provided with adequate and effective fire fighting equipment. It should be able to deal with any small outbreak of fire in any part of the premises.
Means of giving warning in case of fire
This means, maybe giving a warning verbally or the use of a manual gong in very small premises, to a fully blown electrical fire alarm system in the larger premises. It usually means a break glass fire alarm system with or without the means of detecting devices which are required in certain circumstances.
In addition requirements may be imposed regarding:
Maintenance of means of escape
Your means of escape in case of fire has to be maintained and unobstructed. All fire doors should be operating correctly and all doors be available when the premises are occupied. Other requirements may be enforced, such as magnetic door catches be released at certain times and checked to see if they are working satisfactory.
Training and keeping of records
You will be required to carry out regular fire training and record the results of that training. You will be required to keep records on other fire provisions, like the testing of fire alarms, fire extinguishers and fire alarm equipment.
Occupancy numbers
In most cases the means of escape is designed to evacuate all the occupants of the premises in the required time. However, in a number of rare occasions when the means of escape cannot cope with the maximum number of people who could occupy the premises, a limit is placed on the premises. The occupancy number is recorded in the Fire Certificate and it is illegal to exceed this number.
Fire risk to persons
If there is any risk considered to be higher that the normal risk to persons residing on the premises additional requirements can be included in the Fire Certificate.
Other legislation specifically relevant to railways:
The following legislation may be relevant to a contracting entity preparing to seek authorisation for new or upgraded works etc. on the high-speed rail network:
- Railways and other transport systems (Approvals of Works, Plant and Equipment) Regulations 1994 (SI No. 157)
- Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974
- Principal regulations made under this Act with important implications to the railway industry include:
- the Electricity at Work Regulations 1989 (SI No. 635)
- the Health and Safety (Fees) Regulations 2002 (SI No. 655)
- the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 (SI No. 3242) - the Railways (Safety Case) Regulations 2000 (SI No. 2688)
- the Railways (Safety Critical Work) Regulations 1994 (SI No. 299)
- the Carriage of Dangerous Goods by Rail Regulations 1996 (SI No. 2089)
- the Railway Safety (Miscellaneous Provisions) Regulations 1997
- Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 1994 (SI No. 3140)
- Factories Act 1961
- Fire Precautions Act 1971:
- Health and Safety Fire Certificates (Special Premises) Regulations 1976 (SI No. 2003)
- Fire Precautions (Factories, Offices, Shops and Railway Premises) Regulations 1989 (SI No. 76)
- Fire Precautions (Sub-surface Railway Stations) Regulations 1989 (SI No. 1401)
- Building Act 1984 and Building (Scotland) Act 195
- Building Regulations 1991 (SI No. 2768)
- Town and Country Planning Act 1957
- Office, Shops and Railway Premises Act 1963
- British Transport Commission Act 1957
- Level Crossings Act 1983
- Regulation of Railways Acts 1868, 1873 and 1889
- Railways Regulations Acts 1840 and 1842
- Railways Clauses Consolidation Act 1845
- Transport and Works Act 1992
- Rail Vehicle Accessibility Regulations 1998 (SI No. 2457) (note: these Regulations were notified by the UK to the European Commission as containing a national standard)
There are a large number of acts and orders covering the construction of existing railways. There may be relevant information in any such act that relates to any railway that it is intended to modify.