Guides

Fire safety guides

Clear, up-to-date answers on fire strategies, external walls, the Building Safety Act and day-to-day fire safety compliance – written for the people responsible for buildings.

Fire strategies & design 8
External walls, FRAEW & EWS1 6
Building Safety Act & higher-risk buildings 6
Fire risk assessments & compliance 8
Emerging fire risks 3
Due diligence, reviews & disputes 3

8 guides

Fire strategies & design

Fire strategies for new and existing buildings, Gateway One and Gateway 2, second staircases, conversions and handover information.

Do I need a retrospective fire strategy?

When an existing building needs a fire strategy, what it contains, how it differs from a fire risk assessment, and the usual triggers.

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Fire strategy vs fire risk assessment: what's the difference?

What each document does, the law behind each, who writes them, and how they should work together in your building.

3 min read Read the guide

BS 9994 (draft): the first British Standard for fire strategies

What the draft standard covers, its line on fire risk assessments, competence and existing buildings, and what to do before it's published.

3 min read Read the guide

Gateway 2 rejections: getting your fire strategy approved first time

Current BSR timescales, the common reasons applications are rejected or delayed, and how to prepare a fire strategy that gets through first time.

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Second staircase rules for buildings over 18m: the 30 September 2026 deadline explained

The 30 September 2026 deadline, which schemes are caught, transitional arrangements, 'sufficiently progressed', and what it means for existing buildings.

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Planning Gateway One: when you need a fire statement

Which schemes need a fire statement, what the form covers, who reviews it, London Plan D12 and how prior approval conversions are treated.

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Regulation 38 and the fire and emergency file: what developers must hand over

What Regulation 38 requires, when the information must be handed over, what a good fire safety handover pack contains, and the higher-risk building rules.

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Office-to-residential conversions: a fire safety checklist

What changes when offices become flats, the design checklist for developers, and what to check in an existing converted building.

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6 guides

External walls, FRAEW & EWS1

PAS 9980 appraisals, EWS1 forms, the new cladding remediation duty and how remediation gets funded.

PAS 9980:2026: what's changed, and is your FRAEW still valid?

The revised code for external wall appraisals: new risk bands, a screening step, and what happens to FRAEWs written under the 2022 edition.

4 min read Read the guide

When do you still need an EWS1 form? The RICS update explained

The new RICS valuation standard, when lenders can still ask for an EWS1, the A and B options, and when an FRAEW summary will do.

4 min read Read the guide

The Remediation of Unsafe Cladding Bill and the medium-rise register (11–18m)

The new legal duty to remediate buildings over 11m, the medium-rise register, the penalties and what landlords should do while the bill goes through.

3 min read Read the guide

What is an FRAEW? Do you need one, what it costs and how to read the result

A plain-English explainer: who needs an FRAEW, how it's done, typical costs, how to read the outcome, and what happens next.

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Cladding remediation funding in 2026: schemes, developers and claims

How the Cladding Safety Scheme, Building Safety Fund, developer remediation, under-11m funding and legal routes fit together in 2026.

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FRAEW for commercial buildings: do hotels, offices and warehouses need one?

What the law requires for non-residential external walls, how PAS 9980 principles are adapted, and the issues for hotels, offices and warehouses.

3 min read Read the guide

6 guides

Building Safety Act & higher-risk buildings

Higher-risk buildings, safety case reports, the golden thread and the duties of accountable persons.

Why safety case reports get refused – and how to get your BAC approved

Two-thirds of 2026 BAC applications were refused. The reasons, the regulator's reset, and how to build a safety case that passes.

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Is my building a higher-risk building?

The 18m / 7-storey test, how height and storeys are measured, which buildings are excluded, and the duties that follow.

3 min read Read the guide

Responsible person vs accountable person: who's legally responsible for fire safety?

Who the responsible person and accountable person are, what each must do, how the roles overlap, and where managing agents and RMCs fit.

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The golden thread: what information accountable persons must keep

What the golden thread is, what information it holds, the standards it must meet, who must receive it, and how to set it up without drowning in paperwork.

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PBSA fire safety: higher-risk building duties, safety cases and fire strategies for student accommodation

Why tall PBSA is in scope of the higher-risk regime, the duties that follow, student-specific fire risks, and how to manage a PBSA portfolio.

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Building safety portfolio reviews: what the regulator now expects from landlords

What the BSR's 2026 approach means for landlords with several higher-risk buildings, and how to review, prioritise and evidence a portfolio.

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8 guides

Fire risk assessments & compliance

Fire risk assessments, fire doors, compartmentation, residential PEEPs, premises information boxes and the documents every block should hold.

Residential PEEPs: what responsible persons must do since April 2026

Which blocks are covered since 6 April 2026, the step-by-step duties, PCFRAs, the building emergency evacuation plan and how often to review.

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BS 9792:2025: what's changed for fire risk assessments in blocks of flats

The housing fire risk assessment code that replaced PAS 79-2: scope, what's changed, the link to assessor competence, and what to ask for.

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Mandatory fire risk assessor certification: what's coming

What the 2026 consultation proposed, which buildings may be covered first, the likely timeline, and how to choose a competent assessor now.

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Fire door inspection requirements for blocks of flats (Regulation 10)

Quarterly communal checks, annual flat entrance door checks, what to inspect, records to keep, and the most common defects.

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Fire risk assessment types 1–4 explained (and when you need an intrusive one)

What Types 1, 2, 3 and 4 cover, when you need an intrusive or flat-access assessment, and how often an FRA should be reviewed.

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Compartmentation surveys: when you need one and what they find

What compartmentation is, when a survey is needed, what's inspected, the defects surveys usually find and what happens next.

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Fire safety documents checklist: what every block of flats should hold

What every block should hold, the extra records needed above 11m, at 18m+ and for higher-risk buildings, and how to keep it current.

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Premises information boxes and building plans: what high-rise blocks must have

What goes in the secure information box, the plans the fire service needs, external wall records, monthly lift checks and wayfinding signage.

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3 guides

Emerging fire risks

Lithium-ion batteries, e-bikes, EV charging in car parks, solar PV and battery storage.

E-bike fire safety in blocks of flats: managing lithium-ion battery risks from e-bikes and e-scooters

Why lithium-ion battery fires are different, the rules on common parts, practical policies for residents, and what your FRA should cover.

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EV charging in car parks: the fire risks and what owners should do

What's different about EV fires, what government guidance for covered car parks recommends, and how to assess chargepoints before installing them.

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Solar PV and battery storage fire risk: what to assess on your building

The fire risks of rooftop PV and battery storage, PAS 63100 location rules, what to check on blocks of flats, and when to update your FRA.

3 min read Read the guide

3 guides

Due diligence, reviews & disputes

Fire safety due diligence for transactions, independent peer reviews and expert witness support.

Fire safety due diligence: what RICS technical due diligence does and doesn't cover

What a RICS technical due diligence survey covers, the fire and Building Safety Act risks it can miss, and the red flags buyers and lenders should check.

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FRAEW peer review: when to get an FRAEW, EWS1 or fire strategy checked

The warning signs that a report needs a second look, what a peer review checks, the government's FRAEW quality checks, and what happens next.

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Fire safety expert witness (Part 35): when you need one and what they do

When a fire safety expert is needed, the Part 35 duty to the court, single joint experts, what a compliant report contains, and how to choose.

3 min read Read the guide

FAQs

About these guides

Who writes these guides?

The London Fire Safety Consultants team, drawing on current legislation, British Standards and official guidance. Each guide lists its sources and the date it was last reviewed.

Are the guides legal advice?

No. They're general information about the law and guidance in England. For advice on a specific building, get in touch.

How often are the guides updated?

Whenever the law, guidance or regulator's position changes. Each guide shows the date it was last reviewed.

Need advice on a specific building?

Tell us about the building and what's prompted the question – we'll confirm what's needed and a fixed fee.

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