Progress with Fire Risk Assessments

The Housing Act 2004 and the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 (RR(FS)O) requires local authorities and managing agents to provide safe places of work its their employees, so far as is reasonably practical. This duty also extends to the common areas of the residential properties under our control. The RR(FS)O absorbs all of the previous regulation/legislation that relates to Fire Safety.

The RR(FS)O requires that a fire risk assessment is completed for all residential properties (common areas only). It requires that any fire fighting provisions are in place for early warning, to reduce the spread of fire and/or to facilitate fighting fire are serviced/maintained.

To ensure that Hackney Homes is complying with the requirements:

In the past two years, we have carried out 258 out of 258 fire risk assessments for tower blocks of six storeys and above.

These fire risk assessments identified that six of our tower blocks were assessed as being high risk. On three of these blocks (The Beckers (flats nine to 50); The Beckers (flats 59 to 100); Valley House), the hazards have been removed and this has minimised the risk.

On the remaining three blocks classified as high risk (Barbrook House; Scotney House and Exbury House), we have prioritised major works to address hazards identified. These works will provide secondary fire escape routes out of each flat in these blocks. In the meantime, all residents are able to use the main staircase as an escape route in the event of a fire.

We have also revisited the fire risk assessments carried out on twenty of our blocks (over six storeys) where we have carried out major works.

You can read more about preventing fires at home by clicking here for information on the Hackney Homes website.

You can also contact the LondonFire Brigade on 08000 28 44 28 or via the website www.london-fire.gov.uk

For housing related queries, you can contact the Hackney Homes Contact Centre on 020 8356 3691 or email repairsrcc@hackneyhomes.org.uk