McClarrons Care Network partner and leading independent law firm, Brabners, have written this guest blog post which discusses how parties responsible for fire safety in residential care homes can best manage the risk of fire whilst ensuring compliance with relevant regulations.
The Importance of Fire Safety in Residential Care Homes
Fire safety is crucially important as fires can spread quickly, especially in older buildings, and often lead to health complications, property damage and in extreme cases, loss of life. Fire safety in residential care homes is fundamental as there are vulnerable occupants to be considered.
In the event of a fire in a care home, it is far more difficult to get vulnerable residents out safely for example if they are elderly and/or frail, they may not be easily mobile, or some residents may have impaired vision or be hard of hearing or not have the capacity to act for themselves. Some residents may be bed bound. Reduced mobility issues are further amplified by typical care work shift patterns which often leaves fewer cares on the premises during the night, creating further potential difficulties in moving vulnerable residents to safety.
An example of how disastrous the consequences of fire safety in care homes can be is the 2017 incident in Hertfordshire at the Newgrange Care Home. This incident left 33 people injured and tragically claimed two lives. In 2019, the Newgrange Care Home had to pay a £175,000 fine as it was determined the deaths of two residents were caused by lack of staff training and an inadequate evacuation plan. Similarly, it was discovered that the Rosepark Care Home fire in 2011 could have been avoided if they had made more suitable and sufficient fire safety plans.
In 2019, the London Fire Brigade found 57% of the 117 care homes they inspected failed on fire safety issues.
Parties responsible for fire safety in care homes must ensure compliance with the Care Homes Regulations Act 2001, which sets out the requirements for fire safety in residential care homes. The Health and Social Care Act 2008 established the Care Quality Commission (CQC) as the independent regulator of health and social care in England. In relation to fire safety, care homes are required to meet the requirements of the legislation set out in the Regulatory Reform Fire Safety Order (2005). Parties responsible should also reference the ‘Fire safety risk assessment: residential care premises guidance’ from the Home Office which was last updated on 12 September 2023 (“the Guidance”).
Having the right procedures in place aims to ensure that everyone leaves the building safely and calmly in the quickest manner possible. Without these procedures, people tend to descend into chaos and move in all directions in a panicked state, putting themselves and others in further danger. Furthermore, if care home groups and those responsible for fire safety fail to meet their legal obligations and place people in danger of harm, the CQC has the power to prosecute organisations or individuals which can result in unlimited fines and/or prison sentences.
There are five critically important areas to manage in order to ensure fire safety in care homes. These are:
- fire risk assessment;
- fire alarm system;
- fire extinguishers;
- fire doors; and
- evacuation training.
Fire Risk Assessment
By law, all care homes must have a detailed and up to date fire risk assessment. This forms the basis of all fire safety plans and identifies the fire protection measures needed to keep the specific care home in question safe.
A fire risk assessment must be written down (if there are over five people on the premises), it must be reviewed annually and also reviewed every time there is a significant change to the premises or in terms of residents. All fire safety recommendations proposed in the fire risk assessment must also be implemented in good time.
The Guidance details the five steps that need to be taken to carry out a fire risk assessment. These are to:
- Identify fire hazards – sources of ignition, fuel and oxygen.
- Identify the people at risk – people in and around the premises and people who are particularly vulnerable.
- Evaluate, remove, reduce and protect from risk – what are the risks of a fire occurring and causing harm to people? Remove or reduce the hazards and risks where possible. Consider things such as detection and warning systems, firefighting, escape routes, lighting and signs.
- Record, plan, inform, instruct and train – record findings and action taken and prepare an emergency plan, inform and instruct relevant people and coordinate with others to provide training.
- Review – keep the assessment under review and revise where necessary.
L1 Fire Alarm System
To meet fire safety regulations, care homes need to have an L1 fire alarm system. This is the highest level of protection that a fire alarm system can offer and provides staff and residents with the maximum time possible to evacuate if a fire breaks out. This is critical in residential care homes as it takes longer to evacuate vulnerable people, so increasing the time they have to get to safety is a paramount factor.
An L1 system provides automatic detection, such as smoke or heat detectors, in every room in the care home and can even include detection systems in large cupboards. The L1 system must be serviced at least every six months by a qualified fire alarm engineer, and tested weekly by a competent person. Service certificates and fire logbooks should be kept up to date and maintained to help ensure compliance.
Fire Extinguishers
It is vital to have the correct fire extinguishers in the right locations in a residential care home to help tackle the different types of fire that may occur. Fire extinguishers need to be serviced annually and replaced once they are out of date. The most recent service date will be on the service label visible on the extinguisher.
Fire Doors
Good quality fire doors in working order are essential for fire safety in care homes as they will slow down and limit the spread of a fire providing extra time for evacuation.
Fire doors work as part of a ‘horizontal evacuation’ strategy which is a commonly used strategy for residential care homes, this is discussed in further detail below.
Fire doors can also be connected to the fire alarm system so they close automatically if the fire alarm activates, using magnetic retainers. This option requires weekly testing as part of the fire alarm test and the doors should always be kept closed at night.
All fire doors must close properly and must not be wedged open. They should be visually inspected at least once a quarter and repaired if required; a log should be kept of this in a fire logbook.
Evacuation Training
Residential care home staff and fire marshals need general fire safety training but most importantly, everyone needs to be aware of how to evacuate residents in the case of a fire.
As care homes are usually high-risk premises for fire marshal requirements, the general table below indicates the recommended number of marshals required:
| Marshals per number of employees / occupants | Additional marshals that may be required | ||||
| < 15 | 15-50 | For every additional 50 | Larger sites | Shift cover | Leave of absence |
| 1+ fire marshal | 2+ fire marshals | 1 additional fire marshal | 1 fire marshal per area / floor | Every shift adequately covered | Add 25-50% to the number of marshals required to cover absence |
Care home operators must ensure that everyone knows who the designated fire marshals are and that the fire marshals receive regular training for what to do in a fire.
The standard evacuation procedure, called ‘simultaneous evacuation’ where everyone leaves the premises immediately upon hearing the fire alarm, does not always work for residential care homes due to evacuating people that have reduced mobility.
In these instances, a ‘horizontal evacuation’ training strategy is essential and needs to be adopted and trained for. It involves groups of occupants being moved more gradually from room to room ahead of the fire, buying time to reach all residents.
This is why having working fire doors is also vital, as it assists with the evacuation strategy by helping to slow the spread of fire. Having good quality fire doors and a robust horizonal evacuation strategy work in combination as a crucial way to mitigate risk of injury from fires in care homes.
Depending on the mobility issues of the residents in the care home, evacuation aids such as evacuation chairs or mattresses may also be essential. There should be regular evacuation training and all new team members should be trained as soon as possible when they join with details of all training recorded and maintained in the Training Matrix. Everyone needs to know what to do and where to go in the event if a fire.
The Common Causes
According to the London Fire Brigade, there are 3 main causes of fires in residential care homes:
- 41% cooking and cookers
- 21% other kitchen appliances
- 13% smoking related
It is important to be aware of what commonly causes fires so that care home operators can mitigate against them.
Taking these in turn, it is easy to reduce fire risks by ensuring cooking appliances are switched off after use, no electrical items are placed too close to flammable materials, and that smoking materials are properly disposed of, with the home only permitting smoking in controlled areas. Access by residents to such devices is also an obvious factor to be considered in the care home environment, especially where residents lack mobility and capacity.
The Future
The safety of residents in care homes is vitally important. The risk of harm to residents from fires can be massively reduced by taking simple but effective measures and putting the right regulations and procedures in place.
The CQC has begun taking extra interest in fire safety in recent years and care homes that fail to comply with Fire Service recommendations will find their CQC rating affected as a result. This can result in receiving inadequate ratings or having your CQC registration removed altogether. Intervention, enforcement and even prosecution by the local Fire Authority is also a possibility as all Authorities are also very much alive to the critical importance of fire safety in the care home setting.
Tragically, there have been numerous fatal fires in care homes. If those responsible for fire safety ensure compliance with the regulations, then not only will they avoid any sanctions from CQC or enforcement action from a Fire Authority, they will also ensure the safety of the vulnerable residents in their care and help to create a safer environment for all. Being prepared and having fully trained staff can go a long way to help prevent future incidents.
How Brabners Can Help
Care homes must ensure that the health, safety and wellbeing of all residents and staff are protected at all times.
If you need any help in reviewing your health and safety arrangements, Brabners’ expert health and safety law team can help. Contact the team on 03330 044488 or at hello@brabners.com.
Who are Brabners?
Brabners are a McClarrons Care Network partner and a full-service law firm that brings together the right experts across the business to support care sector businesses and their clients. As part of their involvement in McClarrons Care Network, Brabners provide McClarrons’ Care & Social Welfare clients with:
- a designated Client Relationship Manager
- a free 30-minute initial advice call with a lawyer or advisor from the respective department handling the query.
- free quarterly educational and advisory events.
- tailored training, if requested.
- a discounted rate on their bespoke health and safety product, Brabners Protect.
You can find out more details about exactly what each of these services includes and how you can benefit from them here.
Updated Jan 2026
