Start Your New Year with a Fire Safety Check

The beginning of a new year is the perfect time to get into good habits and implement best practices within your business. Start the year as you mean to go on, focusing on improving business operations and creating a safe and productive work environment for you and your staff.

A great place to start in this respect is with a Fire Safety Check, so you can be sure you’re fully prepared and legally covered for the year ahead. There are various aspects to consider, so here are a few helpful hints from the Ifast team to get you started.

Know the Risks

Depending on the nature of your business there will be a varying degree of fire risks. However, knowing about them prior to a fire and regularly assessing them, will ensure you have a full grasp of potential fire hazards, as well as the ability to put appropriate procedures in place if a fire should take place. In the case of fire safety, knowledge and understanding of risks is often the key to prevention.

Check your Fire Safety Equipment

As a business it’s your responsibility to ensure all fire safety equipment is in good working order – failure to do so could mean you have faulty or broken equipment that puts your employee’s safety at risk. Not only that, but it can affect your insurance policy and legal position, which is why regular checks and maintenance should be carried out on all fire safety equipment.

For larger companies with many fire extinguishers on site it may actually be cost effective to take the servicing in house rather than utilise a contractor. With our Fire Extinguisher Maintenance Courses available, you can equip staff with knowledge on how to ensure firefighting equipment is in working order. In addition be sure to test emergency lighting and fire exit signs, as well as keeping emergency escape routes clear and ensuring fire exit doors open and close easily.

Fire Drills and Training

Ensuring all staff know what to do in the event of a fire is a vital part of your fire safety check. You should ensure all staff are trained in fire safety and procedures, as well as having dedicated trained staff, who attend up to date fire safety training courses on a regular basis. It’s also important to carry out fire drills, by law you need to do at least one per year and keep the results as part of your fire safety and evacuation plan.

Getting the New Year off to a positive start with a thorough Fire Safety Check will mean you’re prepared for the year ahead should a fire situation arise. Having peace of mind that you’re legally covered and that the safety of your employees is optimised is always a good business practice to take into 2016 and beyond.