Oxfordshire

Fire Risk Assessments in Oxford

Firesurv (an OEC trading brand) delivers Fire Risk Assessments throughout Oxford and the surrounding Oxfordshire — sized appropriately to the premises and the regulatory exposure of the Responsible Person. Where the building risk warrants it, we deliver Type 3 and Type 4 FRAs, PAS 9980 FRAEW for external walls, and statutory flat entrance door inspections under the Fire Safety (England) Regulations 2022.

Applicable legislation

RRO 2005 · Fire Safety Act 2021 · Building Safety Act 2022 · PAS 79-1/2 · BS 9991 · BS 9999

Scope in Oxford

What we deliver across Oxford and Oxfordshire.

Full Fire Safety service overview

Fire Risk Assessments (Type 1–4)

PAS 79-1 (non-residential) and PAS 79-2 (residential) risk assessments, with fully costed priority action plans aligned to BS 9997.

Fire Door Inspections

FDIS / UK Fire Doors-aligned inspection of every doorset, with photographic evidence, defect register and remedial specification.

Compartmentation Surveys

Structural fire protection audits — compartment floors, walls, service penetrations and cavity barriers — supported by fire-stopping remedial packages.

Fire Alarm Systems (BS 5839)

Design review, servicing oversight and drain-down testing — ensuring category L1–L5 / M systems meet their design intent.

Emergency Lighting (BS 5266)

Site surveys, design verification, duration testing and annual certification.

Passive Fire Protection

Surveys, specifications and oversight of fire-stopping, intumescent coatings and cavity barriers — to 3rd-party certified standards.

Compliance Support & Retained Advice

Retained fire safety advisor role: ongoing review, legislative updates and responsible-person coaching.

Fire Risk Assessment Remedial Works

End-to-end delivery of FRA actions — from scope through to sign-off and updated FRA.

Fire risk across Oxford's protected and modern estate

Oxford's fire risk profile is shaped by three building stock realities that rarely coincide elsewhere. First, the medieval and Georgian colleges with their narrow staircases, single-stair access, heavy panelled doors and timber-rich interiors. Second, the major hospital and academic complexes at the John Radcliffe, Churchill, Old Road Campus and Headington estates. Third, the substantial HMO and student-housing landscape across East Oxford, Cowley, Headington and Marston, with the highest density of multi-occupied residential accommodation per capita of any UK city.

Oxfordshire Fire & Rescue Service operates one of the more proactive enforcement programmes in the south-east, with particular focus on HMO and student accommodation following the introduction of mandatory and additional licensing across Oxford City. The Fire Safety (England) Regulations 2022 apply across the city's stock of multi-occupied residential buildings above 11 metres — a category that includes a significant proportion of the modern student accommodation in Westgate, Castle Mill and the more recent developments along the Oxpens corridor.

Sector exposure in Oxford

The collegiate university presents a particularly demanding fire safety challenge. Listed building consent constraints often preclude the obvious remediation routes (door replacement, lift insertion, second-staircase additions), so fire strategy in colleges typically relies on active management — fire stewards, staffed lodges, sprinkler retrofit where viable, electronic detection upgrades, and a robust evacuation plan. Type 3 and Type 4 FRAs are routine on student accommodation blocks ahead of any major works.

The NHS estate across the Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust footprint demands Type 1 FRAs delivered to Department of Health HTM 05-03 standards, with progressive horizontal evacuation strategies and dependency-based occupancy considerations.

The HMO sector across East Oxford, Cowley, Headington, Marston and Iffley operates on Victorian and Edwardian terraced stock that has been repeatedly subdivided. Common issues include single-stair properties with sleeping accommodation above commercial premises, escape route penetration by services, and bedroom-door performance below current standards.

Modern purpose-built student accommodation developed in the last 15 years sits squarely within the HRB and 11m+ regimes — flat entrance door inspections, common-parts inspections, and where applicable PAS 9980 FRAEW are all now standard.

What we routinely find in Oxford FRA work

Common findings on Oxford Type 1 FRA work include flat entrance door defects (oversize gaps, non-compliant ironmongery, missing intumescent strips); compartmentation defects in undercroft and service-riser locations; combustible storage in common parts particularly during term changeovers; and fire-stopping breaches at floor-to-wall junctions where historic services have been routed through. On PAS 9980 FRAEW work on the more recent purpose-built student accommodation we frequently encounter inadequate construction-stage documentation, pushing the appraisal towards intrusive sampling and a clear remediation route.

How Firesurv delivers in Oxford

Firesurv coverage across Oxford spans the city centre, the science park ring, the JR/Churchill/Old Road campuses, and the wider Oxfordshire footprint towards Banbury, Witney and Bicester. We routinely deliver out-of-term FRA programmes for college estates (Easter, summer, Christmas vacations) and coordinate with college bursars, FM teams and Oxford City Council HMO licensing officers. Fire door inspections are delivered by FDIS-qualified inspectors and PAS 9980 FRAEW by Level 5/Level 6 fire engineers.

The evolving fire safety landscape

Since the Grenfell Tower tragedy in June 2017, the UK fire safety regulatory framework has undergone the most significant reform in a generation. What was once a relatively settled body of law built around the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 (RRO 2005) has been substantially supplemented by the Fire Safety Act 2021, the Building Safety Act 2022, and the Fire Safety (England) Regulations 2022. Duty holders — identified in the legislation as "Responsible Persons" — now operate under a regime of higher expectation, higher scrutiny and materially higher penalty.

The Responsible Person and the legislative framework

Under Article 3 of RRO 2005, the Responsible Person is, in broad terms, the employer, owner, occupier or person having control of non-domestic premises. Where there is more than one Responsible Person, each must co-operate and co-ordinate fire safety measures. The duties imposed on the Responsible Person are extensive and include: undertaking a suitable and sufficient fire risk assessment (Article 9); eliminating or reducing risks so far as reasonably practicable (Articles 8–22); providing general fire precautions; appointing competent persons; and recording significant findings.

The Fire Safety Act 2021 clarified that, for multi-occupied residential buildings, the scope of the fire risk assessment extends explicitly to the structure and external walls of the building (including attachments such as cladding and balconies) and to all doors between domestic premises and common parts — closing the ambiguity exposed at Grenfell.

The Fire Safety (England) Regulations 2022, in force from 23 January 2023, impose further duties on Responsible Persons of multi-occupied residential buildings — including the provision of information to residents, monthly lift inspections in high-rise buildings, annual inspections of flat entrance doors in high-rise buildings, and the provision of building information to local Fire and Rescue Services.

The Building Safety Act 2022

The Building Safety Act 2022 (BSA 2022) introduced a new, more stringent regime for Higher-Risk Buildings (HRBs) — broadly, occupied residential buildings of at least 18 metres in height or 7 storeys with at least two residential units. For HRBs, a Principal Accountable Person (PAP) must be identified, building safety cases prepared, and the Building Safety Regulator notified of occurrence events. The Golden Thread of information — a live, digital record of all fire and structural safety information — must be maintained and shared with successive duty holders and residents.

Fire Risk Assessments — PAS 79-1 and PAS 79-2

The methodology for delivering fire risk assessments is set out in PAS 79-1:2020 (non-residential premises) and PAS 79-2:2020 (residential premises). Both documents, published by BSI and the Fire Protection Association, describe a nine-step process that includes identification of fire hazards, evaluation of fire protection measures, assessment of the likelihood and consequence of fire, and the generation of a risk-scored action plan.

Firesurv distinguishes between four types of residential fire risk assessment: Type 1 (non-destructive, common parts only — the default baseline); Type 2 (destructive sampling in common parts); Type 3 (non-destructive, common parts and sample flats); and Type 4 (destructive, common parts and sample flats — typically commissioned where there is reason to believe the fire strategy may be compromised).

Fire doors — FDIS, BS 8214 and the UK Fire Doors scheme

Certified fire doors are one of the most heavily tested elements of passive fire protection — and one of the most frequently found to be defective in real-world inspections. Firesurv's fire door inspectors operate to BS 8214:2016 — Code of practice for fire door assembly and hold accreditation under the Fire Door Inspection Scheme (FDIS) and the UK Fire Doors scheme. Every doorset is inspected against a structured 30-point checklist covering leaf, frame, gaps, intumescent seals, smoke seals, ironmongery, glazing and signage.

Compartmentation and passive fire protection

Compartmentation surveys are conducted to BS 9991:2015 (residential) and BS 9999:2017 (non-residential) and focus on the integrity of compartment floors, walls and service penetrations. Particular attention is paid to service risers, ceiling voids and cavities — areas where fire-stopping failures are common and where fire and smoke can spread invisibly. Remedial works are specified and overseen by third-party accredited installers operating under FIRAS and equivalent certification schemes.

Detection, alarm and emergency lighting

Fire detection and alarm systems are designed, installed, commissioned and maintained to BS 5839-1:2017 (non-domestic) and BS 5839-6:2019 (domestic), with system category (L1–L5, M, P1/P2) determined by the building use and evacuation strategy. Emergency lighting is specified to BS 5266-1:2016, with annual full-duration testing and monthly function checks logged in the fire log book.

Evacuation strategies and Personal Emergency Evacuation Plans

The default evacuation strategy in purpose-built residential blocks remains "stay put", predicated on the effectiveness of compartmentation. Where compartmentation is compromised, a temporary simultaneous evacuation strategy is implemented, often supported by a common alarm system and a waking watch. Personal Emergency Evacuation Plans (PEEPs) are prepared for residents with mobility or sensory impairments, aligned with the HSE's guidance and BS 9991.

Enforcement and why it matters

Since 2023, penalties for breaches of RRO 2005 include unlimited fines and imprisonment of up to two years. The Sentencing Council's guidelines ensure that large organisations face turnover-linked penalties running into millions of pounds. Beyond enforcement, a well-evidenced fire safety regime protects lives, protects the building fabric, protects resident confidence and protects the Responsible Person's personal liability.

Frequently asked · Oxford

Answers for duty holders in Oxford.

Do Oxford colleges need annual FRAs on each staircase?+

Yes. Each staircase is a separate building under the Fire Safety Order — a college quadrangle is not a single building. Annual Type 1 FRAs are needed on every staircase containing sleeping accommodation; Type 3 or Type 4 FRAs are typically scoped on staircases ahead of major works or following compartmentation concerns.

How does Firesurv handle listed building constraints on Oxford FRAs?+

Listed building status does not change the legal duty under the Fire Safety Order, but it does change the remediation strategy. We typically recommend a balance of active management (fire stewards, staffed lodges, sprinkler retrofit where viable, electronic detection upgrades) and selective fabric intervention. Our reports separate the finding from the strategy explicitly to support listed building consent applications.

Does Oxford City Council require fire safety evidence for HMO licensing?+

Yes. HMO licensing requires evidence of a current Fire Risk Assessment, an up-to-date fire detection certificate, and emergency lighting certification where applicable. Firesurv delivers Type 1 FRAs to HMO licensing standard, with fire door inspections by FDIS-qualified inspectors.

Do I need a Fire Risk Assessment?+

Yes. Under Article 9 of the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005, every Responsible Person in non-domestic premises must carry out a suitable and sufficient Fire Risk Assessment. The Fire Safety Act 2021 extended the scope to include structure, external walls and flat entrance doors in multi-occupied residential buildings.

How often should a Fire Risk Assessment be reviewed?+

A Fire Risk Assessment must be reviewed regularly — typically annually — and whenever there is a significant change to the premises, occupancy or activities, or if the Responsible Person suspects it is no longer valid.

What is a Type 4 Fire Risk Assessment?+

A Type 4 FRA is a destructive fire risk assessment that inspects common parts and a sample of dwellings in a multi-occupied residential building. It is typically commissioned where the fire strategy may be compromised — for example due to known compartmentation defects.

Are fire door inspections a legal requirement?+

Yes. Under the Fire Safety (England) Regulations 2022, Responsible Persons of multi-occupied residential buildings above 11m must carry out quarterly inspections of common-parts fire doors and annual inspections of flat entrance doors. OEC delivers FDIS-aligned fire door inspections to BS 8214.

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