Fire Safety for Disabled People: Everything You Need To Know

Regardless of the setting, fire safety should always be a crucial consideration. However, it becomes even more critical for any property that accommodates those with a disability. Whether that’s an office or a care home, the well-being of all staff, visitors and residents should always be your top priority, with the needs of disabled people taken into account for any fire safety measures.

This month at Surrey Tech Services Ltd, we’re going to take a closer look at what aspects of your fire safety you need to keep in mind to help keep disabled residents safe. We’ll also highlight the legal aspects of this requirement so that you can make sure you’re operating in accordance with the law.

The importance of fire safety for disabled people in care homes

While the importance of everyone in your building should not be overlooked, it’s essential to recognise the additional challenges that disabled residents will face in a care home environment if there is a fire emergency. 

You should have a comprehensive fire safety plan in place that accounts for the various needs of your residents to ensure they are kept safe. Here are just some of the things you can do to ensure you have appropriate measures in place:

• Staff training – First and foremost, your staff should be given training on how to respond to a fire emergency. From the use of different evacuation aids to ways they can communicate effectively with residents, training can help better equip your staff to keep residents safe.
• Evacuation plans – Knowing clearly what the plan is for helping all residents during a fire is crucial, this is where Personal Emergency Evacuation Plans (PEEPs) come in. Your evacuation plan should help plan for anyone who requires special assistance in an emergency, whether that’s due to mobility issues or impaired sight and hearing.
• Fire safety equipment – Fire extinguishers, blankets and any other appropriate fire-fighting equipment should be in place for staff and residents to use in an emergency. This can quickly help to prevent a small fire from spreading.
• Fire alarms – For residents with visual or hearing impairments, you should consider alternative fire alarm equipment to alert them in an emergency. This includes vibrating pillow pads and LED beacons.

Fire safety for disabled people: understanding the law

There are two key laws you need to understand in relation to fire safety for disabled people. The first is the Equality Act 2010, which specifies that you must not put a disabled person at a disadvantage when compared to those who are not disabled. This includes how your building is structured and laid out, with a duty to make adjustments in order to specifically avoid this. This therefore applies to how you approach fire safety in your building, too, ensuring everyone is kept safe and can easily escape should a fire break out.

The second important piece of legislation is the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005, which requires you to ensure that you, as the responsible person, put appropriate fire detection and fire safety measures in place. This also includes making sure a fire risk assessment is performed on a regular basis to ensure that all fire safety measures in your building are upheld and that risks are either removed or reduced.

Fire safety services for care homes

Here at Surrey Tech Services Ltd, we offer a variety of services to help you maintain the highest standards when it comes to fire safety in your care home. From fire doors to protect evacuation routes to fire alarm systems tailored to your premises, we’re here to help you keep staff and residents safe. We can even perform a fire risk assessment to help you understand the potential risks and where you need to improve fire safety measures to ensure those with disabilities are safeguarded.

Wherever you’re based in London and the Home Counties – including Maidenhead, Guildford and Slough – contact us today for any of our fire safety services and we’ll be happy to help.