Fire Safety News Oct 2020
Care home prosecution fine of over £400,000
Farrington Care Homes Ltd was prosecuted and found guilty of fire safety breaches at Hillcroft Residential Care Home, located in Cardiff in October.
The home had been repeatedly required to improve and had failed to do so. The enforcement notices related to breaches of Articles 8, 9, 13, 14, 15, 17 and 21 of the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005
After a number of extensions had not been met, South Wales Fire and Rescue Service decided to prosecute. In summing up District Judge Shomon Khan said
“These are the most vulnerable members of our society. Each of them was put at risk…there was a risk of a large scale tragedy.
“These are very serious offences.”
Source: ITV News
Schools nearly twice as likely to have a fire
In a recent in-depth study insurance company, Zurich found that schools were 1.7 times more likely to have a fire than other non-residential buildings.
The study found that there was a consistent absence of inbuilt fire safety measures such as monitored alarms and sprinkler systems. This means that where fires do start the extent of the impact can be disproportionately high.
The study showed that over 7 million children are being educated in schools that are high fire risk buildings, putting our children at an unacceptable risk.
The study has prompted Zurich to start a petition to make sprinklers law in schools.
The Government has announced a decade long refurbishment programme of the Country’s schools
Source: Zurich UK
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