Fire Safety Guide For SMEs: Everything You Need To Know

Running your own business can be tough, but it can also be rewarding. There’s a lot to juggle on a day-to-day basis for small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in particular, but fire safety should never be something you overlook, no matter how large or small your operations are.

This month at Fire Safety Equipment, we’re going to provide a short guide to fire safety for SMEs. From who is responsible within your business to legal obligations and the essential equipment you need, this guide is intended to help you keep people safe, protect your operations and avoid penalties by highlighting key considerations.

Let’s begin with a quick look at the legal regulations for fire safety in SMEs.

Fire Safety Guide for SMEs

What fire safety legislation is there for SMEs?

The Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 is the major piece of legislation you need to get familiar with, no matter what the size of your business. As well as outlining some general guidelines on who is the responsible person, it importantly outlines your fire safety duties. Key things to note from this include:

Every business requires a fire risk assessment to identify hazards and those at risk, as well as to evaluate existing measures in place with recommendations for reducing risk
The requirement for adequate detection and protection equipment (and its maintenance)
The requirement for safe, clear emergency exit routes (including fire exit signs and emergency lighting)
The provision of adequate fire safety training for staff
Enforcement duties for various authorities if you fail to comply with the provisions set out in the order

You can read the full contents of the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005, on the government’s website to familiarise yourself with the law further.

Next, let’s establish who exactly it falls to within your business to ensure fire safety procedures are followed.

Who is responsible for fire safety in an SME?

Knowing who is responsible for fire safety in your business is important as it helps highlight whose duty it is to implement the correct procedures and provide the appropriate equipment. For an SME, whoever is in control of the premises is deemed the responsible person for fire safety.

This can be the landlord, the person who owns the building, the business owner or the facilities manager. If this is you, the legal obligations outlined in the previous section fall on your shoulders.

What essential fire safety equipment do I need?

Fire can devastate any business, but as you can imagine, it’s even harder for an SME to recover as there may not be an extensive support network and endless capital, which is why fire protection equipment is crucial.

Fire extinguishers, fire hose reels, key boxes, fire trolleys and fire warden equipment can all help you protect lives and assets in your building and avoid a disaster. With that in mind, it is absolutely vital that you get the right equipment that is most relevant to your business.

One of the most critical pieces of equipment for minimising risk and preventing small fires from spreading is fire extinguishers. That’s why we’ve broken them down by application to help you find the right unit for the relevant risks you face:

Fire safety training for staff

Putting the right measures and equipment in place forms a large part of your fire safety measures, but they’re only as good as the training you provide for your staff. Emergency evacuation plans and regular fire drills will help staff to understand what to do in the event of a fire, but you should also make sure staff understand which fire extinguishers are appropriate for different fire types to keep them safe.

With a variety of fire extinguishers to meet different fire classes, you can find out more about these on our individual category pages:

Water Extinguishers: Suitable for Class A fires
Foam Extinguishers: Suitable for Class A and B fires
Powder Extinguishers: Suitable for Class A, B, and C fires and some electrical fires
Carbon Dioxide (CO2) Extinguishers: Suitable for electrical fires
Wet Chemical Extinguishers: Suitable for Class F fires
Lith-ex Extinguishers: Suitable for lithium-ion battery fires

Whether you’re running a small retail unit or a medium-sized business in an office space, at Fire Safety Equipment, we can help you to protect people and your assets with vital equipment and accessories. With everything in one handy online store, you can select the right fire signage, buy fire blankets for your kitchen area and upgrade your fire extinguishers without having to shop in multiple places — that means you can focus more of your time and effort on making your business a success.

Browse our online store and place your order today for free, swift delivery of high-quality equipment in the UK.