Fire safety compliance
Under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005, the responsible person for a non-domestic building must keep a suitable fire risk assessment and maintain fire safety systems. In practice that means weekly fire alarm tests, monthly emergency lighting checks and an annual full-duration emergency lighting test, following BS 5839-1 and BS 5266-1.
The law behind it
- Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005
- Fire Safety (England) Regulations 2022 (additional duties for multi-occupied residential buildings)
- BS 5839-1 (fire detection and alarm systems) and BS 5266-1 (emergency lighting)
What is due and when
| Check | Frequency |
|---|---|
| Fire risk assessment | Kept up to date and reviewed regularly, and after any significant change |
| Fire alarm call-point test | Weekly |
| Fire alarm service by a competent person | At least every six months (BS 5839-1) |
| Emergency lighting function test | Monthly (BS 5266-1) |
| Emergency lighting full-duration test | Annually (BS 5266-1) |
| Fire extinguisher service | Annually (BS 5306-3) |
The duty sits with the responsible person — usually the employer, owner or managing agent — even when the testing is contracted out.
Records matter as much as the tests: an enforcing authority will ask to see the log book.
Official source: GOV.UK — Fire safety in the workplace. This page summarises the guidance; it is not legal advice.
Have it handled
We schedule, carry out and record these checks as part of facilities management risk assessments, with every certificate held in one compliance record.
Other statutory obligations
Pearl Lemon Facilities Management