All escape routes, including external ones, must have sufficient lighting for people to see their way out safely. Emergency escape lighting may be needed if areas of the workplace are without natural daylight or are used at night.

Before providing emergency escape lighting, check the relevant parts of the workplace with the lights off to see whether there is sufficient borrowed light from other sources to illuminate the escape route, eg street lights or unaffected lighting circuits. Where you decide there is insufficient light, you will need to provide some form of emergency lighting. Emergency lighting needs to function not only on the complete failure of the normal lighting, but also on a localised failure if that would present a hazard.

Emergency escape lighting should:

indicate the escape routes clearly;

provide illumination along escape routes to allow safe movement towards the final exits; and

ensure that fire alarm call points and fire-fighting equipment can be readily located.

In addition to emergency escape lighting, it may be necessary to provide other forms of emergency lighting for safety reasons, for example to ensure that manufacturing processes can be shut down safely.

In smaller workplaces and outdoor locations with few people, the emergency escape lighting could take the form of battery-operated torches placed in suitable positions where employees can quickly get access to them in an emergency, eg on an escape route. In other cases, you should provide an adequate number of electrically operated emergency lighting units, installed to automatically come on if the power to the normal lighting supply circuit, which they are connected to, fails.

Typical emergency lighting units

Emergency lighting units should be sited to cover specific areas, for example:

intersections of corridors;

at each exit door;

near each staircase so that each flight of stairs receives direct light;

close to a change in floor level;

outside each final exit;

by exit and safety signs that are required elsewhere following the risk assessment;

within lift cars;

near fire-fighting equipment; and

near each fire alarm call point.

The lighting units should be placed as low as possible but at least 2 metres above floor level (measured to the underside of the lighting unit). You may need to consider alternative mounting arrangements in areas where smoke could accumulate and make the lighting ineffective.

Where it is considered that an electrical emergency lighting system is required, the system should be installed in accordance with British Standard 5266: Part 1. You should seek the advice of a competent person who specialises in the installation of these systems.

In larger or complex buildings, a smoke control system may be an effective way of keeping means of escape routes clear of smoke so that occupants can evacuate safely.

Smoke exhaust, using either natural smoke exhaust ventilators or powered smoke exhaust ventilators, is arranged so that the hot smoke and gases rise and collect under the ceiling in reservoirs and are then removed through the ventilators. The aim is to keep smoke at a safe height above the heads of people using the escape route, while the fire is still burning.

To achieve this, any smoke and heat exhaust system and its components should be designed and installed by a competent person. Guidance on the design of these systems is in the Building Research Establishment (BRE) reports Design principles for smoke ventilation in enclosed shopping centres BR 186, and Design approaches for smoke control in atrium buildings BR 258. The British Standard Draft for Development 240 Parts 1 and 2 and the CIBSE Fire Engineering Guide also provide useful guidance. (See the References section for details of these publications.)

Alternatively, a smoke control system using a pressure differential system or depressurisation system can be used to maintain a smoke-free escape route. When using this form of control, the design, installation and ongoing maintenance of the system should be in accordance with British Standard 5588: Part 4.

If you decide to refurbish, redecorate or alter the workplace in a way that affects one or more means of escape, you will need to make sure that there are still enough escape routes for the staff (and any others present) to use should a fire occur.

If your workplace has a current fire certificate in force, you must inform your local fire authority before carrying out any structural or material alterations. You may also need Building Regulation approval and should consult the relevant building control authority. Other regulations controlling the safety arrangements in the workplace during construction or alteration may also apply, such as the Construction (Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulations 1996. Your local fire authority will be able to offer you further advice.

Portable fire extinguishers enable suitably trained people to tackle a fire in its early stages, if they can do so without putting themselves in danger.

All workplaces should be provided with means of fighting fire for use by people in the premises. When you are deciding on the types of extinguisher to provide, you should consider the nature of the materials likely to be found in your workplace.

Fires are classified in accordance with British Standard EN 2 as follows:

Class A and B fires

Class A fires involve solid materials, usually of organic matter such as wood, paper etc. They can be dealt with using water, foam or multi-purpose powder extinguishers, with water and foam considered the most suitable. Your risk assessment will help you decide how many you need.

Class B fires involve liquids or liquefiable solids such as paints, oils or fats. It would be appropriate to provide extinguishers of foam (including multi-purpose aqueous film-forming foam (AFFF)) carbon dioxide, halon* or dry powder types. Carbon dioxide extinguishers are also suitable for a fire involving electrical equipment.

*Halon extinguishers are not generally recommended for day-to-day fire risks because of their ozone-depleting potential. They will be banned except for defined essential uses after 31 December 2003. For special risks, one of the other liquefied gas-type extinguishers may be used.

The fire extinguishers currently available for dealing with Class A or Class B fires should not be used on cooking oil or fat fires (but see 'Class F fires' on page 59).

Class C fires

Dry powder extinguishers may be used on Class C fires. However, you need to consider the circumstances for their use and combine this with action such as stopping the leak, to remove the risk of a subsequent explosion from the build-up of unburnt gas.

Class D fires

None of the extinguishers referred to above will deal effectively with a Class D fire as these involve metals such as aluminium, magnesium, sodium or potassium. Only specially trained personnel using special equipment should tackle such fires. If your assessment identifies the risk of a fire involving these metals, you should consult your local fire authority about the best way of dealing with it.  

Class F fires

Special extinguishers are available for use on fires involving cooking fats and oils, eg chip pans and deep fat friers, but these should only be used by specially trained people. (This is not an established class within the current British Standard but may be added as a new fire classification when the relevant standard is revised. The class is used in this guide for ease of reference.)

The fire-fighting extinguishing medium in portable extinguishers is expelled by internal pressure, either permanently stored or by means of a gas cartridge. Generally speaking, portable fire extinguishers can be divided into five categories according to the extinguishing medium they contain:

water;

foam;

powder;

carbon dioxide; and

vaporising liquids, including halons.

Some fire extinguishers can be used on more than one type of fire. For instance, AFFF extinguishers can be used on both Class 'A' fires and Class 'B' fires. Your fire equipment supplier will be able to advise you.

The most useful form of fire-fighting equipment for general fire risks is the water-type extinguisher or hose reel. One such extinguisher should be provided for approximately each 200 square metres of floorspace, with a minimum of one per floor. If each floor has a hose reel which is known to be in working order and of sufficient length for the floor it serves, there may be no need for water-type extinguishers to be provided.

Areas of special risk involving the use of oil, fats, or electrical equipment may need carbon dioxide, dry powder or other types of extinguisher. If you are not sure what to provide in any given circumstances, your local fire authority will be able to advise you. British Standard 5306: Part 3 provides advice about the selection and allocation of portable fire extinguishers.

Fire extinguishers should conform to a recognised standard such as British Standard EN 3 for new ones and British Standard 5423 for existing ones. For extra assurance, you should look for the British Standard Kitemark, the British Approvals for Fire Equipment (BAFE) mark or the Loss Prevention Council Certification Board (LPCB) mark.

Fire extinguishers may be colour-coded to indicate their type. Previously, the entire body of the extinguisher has been colour-coded, but British Standard EN 3: Part 5 (which came into effect on 1 January 1997) requires that all new fire extinguisher bodies should be red. A zone of colour of up to 5% of the external area, positioned immediately above or within the section used to provide the operating instructions, may be used to identify the type of extinguisher. This zone should be positioned so that it is visible through a horizontal arc of 180° when the extinguisher is correctly mounted. The colour-coding should follow the recommendations of British Standard 7863.

Fire extinguishers, if properly maintained and serviced, may be in service for at least 20 years. So there may be situations where a building will have a mixture of new and old fire extinguishers with the same type of extinguishing medium but with different colour-coded markings. In these cases and to avoid any confusion, it is advisable to ensure that extinguishers of the same type but with different colour-coded markings are not mixed, either at the same location in single-storey buildings or on the same floor level in multi-storey buildings.

Old-style fire extinguishers must not be painted red to try and comply with the new standard, as this would contravene British Standard EN 3 which covers technical changes during the manufacturing stage.

Fire extinguishers should normally be located in conspicuous positions on escape routes, preferably near exit doors. Wherever possible, fire-fighting equipment should be grouped to form fire points. These should be clearly visible or their location clearly and conspicuously indicated so that fire points can be readily identified. Where workplaces are uniform in layout, extinguishers should normally be located at similar positions on each floor.

If for any reason extinguishers are placed in positions hidden from direct view, the Health and Safety (Safety Signs and Signals) Regulations 1996 require that their location should be indicated by signs and, where appropriate, directional arrows. Suitable signs are described in the HSE Guidance on the Regulations (see the References section).

Colour-coding of fire extinguishers

Where practicable, fire extinguishers should be securely hung on wall brackets. Where this is impracticable, extinguishers should be placed on a suitable baseplate (not on the floor). To assist in lifting, the carrying handle of larger, heavier extinguishers should be about 1 metre from the floor but smaller, lighter extinguishers may be mounted at a higher level. Make sure that the weight of the equipment falls below the guidelines recommended in the Manual Handling Operations Regulations 1992 (see the References section). This will ensure that extinguishers are easy to handle and use.

Where hose reels are provided, they should be located where they are conspicuous and always accessible, such as in corridors.

Fire blankets should be located in the vicinity of the fire hazard they are to be used on, but in a position that can be safely accessed in the event of a fire. They are classified as either light-duty or heavy-duty. Light-duty fire blankets are suitable for dealing with small fires in containers of cooking oils or fats and fires involving clothing. Heavy-duty fire blankets are for industrial use where there is a need for the blanket to resist penetration by molten materials.

Hose reels and fire blankets should conform with relevant British Standards (see the References section). If you are unsure about the number or type of portable fire-fighting equipment or hose reels you need, you should check with the local fire authority before purchasing any such equipment.

In smaller workplaces, portable fire extinguishers will probably be sufficient to tackle small fires. However, in more complex buildings, or where it is necessary to protect the means of escape and/or the property or contents of the building, it may be necessary to consider a sprinkler system.

Sprinkler systems are traditionally acknowledged as an efficient means of protecting buildings against extensive damage from fire. They are also now acknowledged as an effective means of reducing the risk to life from fire. Systems are being developed which may be suitable for use in workplaces with residential areas, such as care homes and houses in multiple occupancy.

Sprinkler systems need to be specifically designed and installed to the appropriate hazard category in accordance with an approved code of practice (eg British Standard 5306: Part 2 - see the References section, or Technical Bulletins from the Loss Prevention Council - see Further information). This will ensure that that the operation of the system will effectively limit/control the effects of the fire with minimal failures or unwanted operations (these are usually due to inappropriate use or poor maintenance).

Further information on the requirements for sprinkler systems, and their benefits, can be obtained from your local fire authority.

In many industrial and commercial premises, fires can pose a serious threat to the safety of employees working in or adjacent to areas involving:

process machinery;

electrical switchgear and transformers;

control- and data-processing equipment; and

flammable materials storage.

Fires involving these risks can effectively be dealt with by the installation of fixed fire-fighting systems that may be either automatically or manually operated. For example, process equipment and machinery which handles flammable substances (eg printing machines, rolling mills, or oil-filled switchgear), may be protected by extinguishing systems, using dry powder, foam, carbon dioxide or other inert gas. However, recent developments using water mist technology mean that these systems may also be useful, especially in food-processing areas.

Similarly, protection of control- and data-processing equipment may be achieved by systems designed to totally fill the room or the cabinets containing such equipment with a gas-flooding extinguishing medium to a specified concentration. These types of systems use a range of gas extinguishing media. Where there is a possibility that these may discharge into occupied areas, you need to ensure that the resulting concentration of the extinguishing medium will not be harmful to anybody present.

Where necessary, protection of large-scale storage facilities of flammable materials, especially in bulk tanks, may also be achieved by fixed deluge water or foam systems.

The design and installation of fixed fire-fighting systems requires a high level of expertise, including the ability to carry out a thorough risk assessment and select the appropriate system and fire-fighting medium. Such systems have to be specially designed, and can be expensive. If you are considering installing such a system, you should liaise with the relevant enforcing authority and consult a reputable company at an early stage. The British Fire Protection Systems Association can supply you with a list of companies in your area that undertake this type of work (see the 'Further information' section for details).

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