Buckinghamshire Fire & Rescue Service (BFRS) would like to continue to help care home residents and workers by providing a useful insight into how they can maintain good fire safety.
Fire safety in care homes is not just a legal requirement—it is your responsibility to protect residents, staff, and visitors. Understanding fire risks, maintaining fire safety measures, and ensuring effective evacuation strategies are essential for safeguarding lives.
Fire risk assessment
This should be reviewed on a regular basis. When changes are made within the premises, the fire risk assessment should be updated accordingly to reflect these changes.
Maintenance and testing
Fire safety features within the premises, such as fire alarm systems, emergency lighting, fire doors and fire extinguishers, should be serviced and maintained. These features are designed to give warning and protect lives by enabling residents to escape in an emergency. If they are not looked after suitably, the risk of harm is increased.
Ensuring Safe Escape Routes
- Escape routes must always be clear—do not store furniture, equipment, or mobility aids in corridors or near exits and consider the external routes to be taken to the assembly point.
- Fire doors must be closed, unless on hold-open devices linked to the fire alarm system – they are critical for preventing the spread of smoke and fire.
- Emergency lighting and signage should be installed to assist staff during evacuations.
- Regularly test fire exits to ensure they open easily and are free from obstruction.
Evacuation strategy
Training should be in place to ensure that all staff and residents within the care home are aware of what actions to take in the event of an emergency. Any escape routes should be kept clear and escape route signage should be visible. Residents within the premises may have specific personal emergency evacuation plans (PEEPs), which should be kept safe and understood.
- Evacuation plans must account for residents with significant mobility or manual handling needs, including bariatric residents, who may require specialist evacuation equipment and more staff to support during an emergency.
- Ensure staff-to-resident ratios support safe evacuation, particularly at night when staffing levels may be lower.
Air flow mattresses
These items are designed to assist in movement of the patient by adjusting the pressure on sores and ulcers often acquired my immobility. The mattresses are filled with air from a pump and powered by an electronic power supply. If air flow mattresses are exposed to a heat source, such as a cigarette, the mattress could burst. The effect that the air can have on a heat source can rapidly develop a fire. For this reason, we strongly advise against any form of heat source coming into close proximity to an air flow mattress.
Oxygen therapy kits
Some residents within care homes require the use of oxygen therapy kits due to respiratory conditions. This presents a similar risk to that of air flow mattresses. The oxygen supplied can cause a fire to develop rapidly, should they become involved. Therefore, smoking should not take place near oxygen therapy kits. Any source of heat such as candles, stoves and pans should be kept clear from oxygen therapy kits.
Emollient creams
Emollient creams and paraffin-based creams are regularly used for the treatment of dry skin conditions, such as psoriasis and eczema. Although these creams are generally safe in their use, if used in large quantities on areas of the body they can soak into clothing, bedding and dressings. On occasion a flammable residue may be left on items. If this residue is then exposed to a heat source such as a naked flame from a cigarette, cooking or a candle it may assist in the development of fire spread. Individual risk assessments should be carried out for those that use emollient creams, where control measures can be put in place such as regular washing of items, removing heat sources and seeking medical advice for alternative creams.
Charging of electric mobility equipment
The charging of electric equipment such as electric wheelchairs & hoists is not permitted within the emergency escape routes. Create a battery charging policy and procedure, ensure the battery charging procedure is followed.
Battery charging should take place in a room with an Automatic Fire Detector and a closed fire door. Equipment should not be charged in the means of escape or in a residential room while occupied.
Fire Escape routes and stairways are to be maintained as fire-sterile (free from combustibles) and obstruction-free at all times.
Research through the National Fire Chiefs Council (NFCC) website has found that within three minutes of ignition, a mobility scooter can reach temperatures 375 degrees Celsius and quickly fill the room with thick smoke. Dedicated storage facilities for mobility scooters should be in place.