Hampshire Fire and Rescue Authority Item 13

15/03/200513 September 2006

Error! Bookmark not defined.Commencement of the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005

Report by the Chief Officer

Contact: T/Area Manager Steve Hamm Tel: 02380 644000 ext 4065

1

Summary

1.1

The reform of fire safety regulation in England and Wales takes effect on 1 October 2006. This report outlines the key implications of the changes highlighting the statutory duties that will be placed on the Authority at the Order's commencement.

1.2

The report also describes in broad terms the way in which the Service will carry out its duty as an enforcer and how the Order relates to Integrated Risk Management Planning.

2

RecommendationError! Bookmark not defined.s

2.1

That the general implications of the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 as summarised in this report be noted.

2.2

That the statutory duty placed on the Authority as an enforcer of the Order (Section 6) be noted.

3

Introduction Error! Bookmark not defined.and Background

3.1

The Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order will come into force on 1 October 2006. This implementation has been subject to some delay in order that the business community was afforded suitable preparation time to comply with the requirements of the Order.

3.2

The Service has fully engaged with the development of the Order through its role as lead in producing enforcement guidance to fire and rescue authorities (through a dedicated Chief Fire Officers' Association (CFOA) working group. This has enabled our own local policies and working practices to be developed in alongside the production of the national guidance and well in advance of the commencement date for the Order.

3.3

The Service has dedicated a specialist fire safety practitioner to the task of supplementing the national publicity and education programmes that support the introduction of the Order. This activity is continuing and is supplemented by the our Business Education Team.

3.4

The Order significantly changes the approach to the regulation of fire safety within workplaces and other public access buildings. These changes have an impact on us as an enforcing authority and inevitably impact on our Integrated Risk Management Plan (IRMP) as the vehicle for identifying actions to mitigate and manage fire-related risks in the community.

4

Overview of the Fire Safety Order

4.1

The Order changes the ethos of fire safety regulation both in its method and its scope. In contrast to the previous prescriptive regime under the Fire Precautions Act 1971, the Order casts its requirements upon individuals known as "responsible persons". This is a distinct change from the previous arrangements whereby the FRA was required to prescribe standards to building occupiers and owners. The scope of the Order brings - with only minor specific exceptions - all workplaces and public access buildings into the enforcement remit of fire and rescue authorities. The previous legislative regime was concerned only with workplaces.

4.2

The Order is framed by an overarching requirement that the "responsible person" takes responsibility for general fire precautions. The core requirement is that these general fire precautions are based upon a process of risk assessment. It has the effect that primary responsibility for fire safety is shifted from the fire authority to the individual. This shift continues the precedent set in other aspects of Health and Safety Regulation that stem from European Directives.

4.3

The statutory role of fire and rescue authorities is that of enforcement. They are empowered by the Order to issue enforcement and prohibition notices where necessary. However in so doing, the principle of shifting primary responsibility to the individual is maintained. Authorities are required to refrain from offering prescriptive solutions, instead it is required to give suitable direction and offer individuals a degree of choice in remedies to any given situation.

4.4

Hampshire Fire and Rescue Service has adopted the CFOA "Fire Safety Policy Directive" in determining policies and procedures that satisfy the enforcement role placed upon the FRA by the Order. This suite of policy guidance has ensured that, as far as possible, a consistent approach to enforcement is displayed by all authorities through the use of best practice including the Health and Safety Executive's "Enforcement Management Model" and the principles of the "Enforcement Concordat". Our policies and procedures for carrying out our duties under the Order are compliant with both of these key models.

5

Those regulated by the Order

5.1

The implementation of the Order will require the identification of "responsible persons". These will be employers, or in the case of non-workplaces, those in control, or in some cases the owners of buildings. These responsible persons must ensure that a risk assessment is carried out and that general fire precautions are put in place.

5.2

This risk assessment approach has the effect of dealing with all aspects of fire safety regulation in a consistent manner. Many fragmented pieces of primary legislation are revoked by the Order, and other recent new legislation in the key areas of licensing and housing management allow the risk assessment approach to be maintained consistently. The new legislative regime provides fire and rescue authorities with enforcement responsibility across the vast majority of public buildings and workplaces.

5.3

To assist the "responsible person" the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) has produced a range of guidance documents that apply to the various types of building occupation. These guides form an essential part of what is a "self compliance" approach. It is the production of these documents and the associated familiarisation activities that resulted in the delay to implementation from April 2005 to October 2006.

5.4

The guides are made under a direct requirement placed on the Secretary of State for the DCLG. They are given a "statutory provenance" and although they do not carry statutory force, their principles will serve as the basis for authorities' standards of fire safety when considering their enforcement activity.

6

The role of HFRA as enforcer and relationship with the Integrated Risk Management Plan (IRMP)

6.1

The Order places only a non-specific, broadly phrased, duty to carry out enforcement. The reason for this is that during the development of the Order, the DCLG advocated that the Order was merely one component of a broader range of risk management activities, all of which should be enshrined with authorities' IRMPs. It is therefore of prime importance that the level of enforcement activity is properly determined through the IRMP process as the previous prescriptive frequencies of building inspections are no longer stipulated. Members will be aware that our IRMP already has protection objectives which explicitly contain the approach to how we will target resources against risk.

6.2

It is worthy of note that the DCLG considered that effective regulation would be achieved through a combination of factors including a statutory duty to enforce (for which guidance has been issued), the National Framework, local IRMPs and the CPA process. The Authority must maintain this approach through the delivery of enforcement activity. This is achieved by the adoption of guidance which has been issued by the DCLG, the use of risk analysis through the use of the Community Fire Risk Management Information System (CFRMIS), the adoption of local authority based fire safety delivery teams, and themed activities according to changes in risk profiles. For example, during the Christmas period, we will concentrate on areas such as shops and licensed premises, whereas in the spring and summer months the focus may shift to holiday accommodation and hotels. New "IRMP returns" will require authorities to evidence the extent and amount of regulation and enforcement activity carried out.

6.3

It is important that the Authority makes arrangements to gather risk information in respect of the broader range of buildings that we are now required to regulate. Measures that have already been put in place include the `CFRMIS' database which applies risk ratings that take into account relative risk posed by different types of buildings. For example, we weight our risk analysis for hospitals and residential establishments greater than the relatively lower risks such as office accommodation. Our local managers are also now empowered to direct resources according to local knowledge and in response to information gathered from other sources, including our response crews.

6.4

To ensure that we are a legally compliant enforcer, we will continue to subscribe to legal counsel advice through the `Bar Direct' scheme.

7

Contribution to Corporate Aims and Objectives

7.1

The wider scope of the Fire Safety Order will enable the Authority to provide a more comprehensive enforcement regime in our regulation of the highest risks. This wider regime will allow a more direct and targeted approach to contribute to the reduction of fire deaths and injuries, the number of fires and deliberate fires.

7.2

The requirement for risk assessments to be "suitable and sufficient" will provide a pathway to address those premises where unwanted fire alarm calls from automatic detection systems are a particular problem. We will use our enforcement powers where appropriate to resolve unsuitable levels of calls.

8

Risk Analysis

8.1

The potential for incorrect application of a statutory duty - such as enforcement of the Fire Safety Order - is contained within our Strategic Risk Register. Various control measures have been put in place to mitigate and manage this risk. These control measures include a comprehensive training programme to ensure the appropriate competence of our staff who are expected to enforce the Order. We have maintained our fire protection staffing levels that have been in place during the previous prescriptive regime, but have redeployed some to wider fire-safety duties. We are also using local plans to identify local risks in each fire station and local authority area.

9

Resource Implications

9.1

Human Resources

No significant implications identified at this stage.

9.2

Physical Resources

No significant implications identified at this stage.

9.3

Information and Communications Technology Resources

The use of the CFRMIS system will be supplemented later this year by the introduction of remote working technology. This will improve efficiency by enabling `point of delivery' information to be gathered and utilised. The funding for this technology has been secured from the IEG funding stream.

9.4

Financial Implications

The creation of our Business Education Team will concentrate activities on the priorities of AFD reduction activities and delivering training to assist with compliance of the Order. This may result in some reduction in the revenues generated by the Training provided to external organisations and has been anticipated in the estimated costs associated with our future IRMP objectives.

10

Equality Impact Assessment

10.1

Our policy for delivering services under the new Order is contained `Service Order 6/11' which has been subject to an EIA initial screening and this has not revealed any major points of concern.

10.2

The proposals within this report are considered compatible with the provisions of the European Convention on Human Rights, the Human Rights Act 1998, and the Race Relations (Amendment) Act 2000.

10

Consultation

10.1

Our officers have fully participated in consultation with other fire and rescue authorities through CFOA-led national and local working groups on how to apply best practice in the enforcement of the Fire Safety Order.

10.2

Hampshire Fire and Rescue Service has consulted with the business community through a range of seminars and briefing sessions over the 12 months. These events have provided stakeholders with the opportunity to comment on the Order. Although the Order is not negotiable in terms of its content, we continue to be mindful of stakeholders' needs and concerns to ensure compliance. This is reflected through our current positive action initiatives in local business groups.

10.3

During the formative period of the Order's development, we responded to consultation exercises.

11

Conclusion

11.1

The Fire Safety Order significantly changes the ethos of fire safety regulation. The new regime will provide the Authority with the ability to further develop its IRMP and should be viewed as an opportunity that has been long awaited by fire and rescue service professionals to deal with risk in a more effective and efficient manner.

11.2

We are well placed and prepared to carry out the statutory enforcement role inherent the Order. We will do so in a fair and consistent manner, and where necessary will pursue legal action against serious breaches of fire safety standards.

Background Information (Section 100D of Local Government Act 1972)

The following documents disclose the facts or matters on which this report, or an important part of it, is based and has been relied upon to a material extent in the preparation of the report:

· The Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) order 2005 http://www.opsi.gov.uk/si/si2005/20051541.htm

Note: The list excludes: (1) published works; and (2) documents that disclose exempt or confidential information defined in the Act.