A REPORT and survey found that over 60% of people responsible for fire safety in workplaces believe they ‘could be doing more to ensure the building is fire safe’.
The Fire Safety Accountability report, from JLA Fire, asked over 500 respondents ‘who are responsible for ensuring their building/workplace is a fire safe environment’ a series of questions about their knowledge of fire safety. Among its findings were that one in 10 ‘don’t know how’ to undertake a fire risk assessment, while only 38% of workplace fire safety staff said they were ‘doing enough to ensure the building is fire safe’.
Among the reasons given for not ‘doing more’ to ensure buildings are safe were ‘lack of budget, added stress and lack of time’, with almost 15% believing they should be ‘doing more’ to ensure their properties are fire safe. JLA stated that these results showed over 60% ‘of people responsible for fire safety in the workplace […] believe they could be doing more to ensure the building is fire safe’.
The company added that 10% ‘do not know how’ to undertake fire risk assessments either ‘despite being responsible for the job’, while 13.5% though they ‘should be doing more’ to ensure fire safety. It said that the main reasons for not ‘doing more’ were said by 18% to be due to a lack of budget, 18% because of the ‘added stress’ and 15% because of a ‘lack of time’. Almost half, or 49%, admitted ‘they do not train all staff on fire safety’, while 12% do not offer ‘any form of fire safety training’.
Nearly a fifth of respondents also admitted that they had been ‘turning to social media’ for fire safety guidance, with JLA managing director Rob Harris stating: ‘While it’s enlightening to see that some demographics have a satisfactory awareness of reducing fire risk, it is concerning that a large proportion of those surveyed are unaware of fire safety procedures, and believe they could be doing more to protect those around them.
‘Budget constraints or added stress – or indeed the coronavirus crisis - are not adequate reasons to avoid rectifying this awareness, as the potential damage a fire could cause would have far more costly implications on a business’ reputation and finances.
‘By identifying the gaps in people’s knowledge and fire safety procedures, we know the areas that need significant improvement and we urge employers and fire safety employees to conduct widespread training, equipment checks and procedural updates as a priority.’
A fire risk assessment is a mandatory requirement for every commercial premises. Download our free fire risk assessment template for simple premises