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Tenants across UK report fire safety failings
A raft of fire safety failings have been reported by social and private sector tenants across the UK.
In a poll of 1,000 renters, conducted last month by Atomic Research for the British Woodworking Federation, 40% said no clear fire escape route was displayed where they lived.
A similar proportion had seen fire doors propped open, with one in five having noticed damage to fire doors.
More than half of those polled did not feel fully prepared on how to act in the event of a blaze at home, with just 10% of social renters and 23% of private tenants having heard in person from their landlord since the Grenfell Tower tragedy.
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Almost one in five respondents had reported a fire safety concern to their landlord and some had waited weeks for a response.
The research was published to mark Fire Door Safety Week, which runs until Sunday.
Inside Housing recently revealed fire safety failures in hundreds of tower blocks across the country in a major investigation looking at 436 fire risk assessments.
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Hannah Mansell, technical manager at the British Woodworking Federation and chair of the Passive Fire Protection Forum, said: “It is astounding to learn that in the past three months so little has been done to address the concerns of tenants and residents.
“Many people do not realise that the real job of a fire door is to hold back fire, smoke and toxic gases, delaying the spread around a building and keeping the vital escape route clear.
“They only work properly if they are specified, manufactured, installed and maintained correctly, and of course, closed when a fire breaks out.
“Checking fire doors should be part of a regular fire risk assessment. This should examine all aspects of fire safety management, including active and passive fire protection measures, signage, means of escape and the specific fire plan procedures.”
