Detailed Fire Safety Instructions and Risk Assessment for Care Homes

This report provides comprehensive fire safety instructions for care homes, focusing on risk assessment and prevention strategies. It emphasizes the importance of identifying potential hazards and implementing appropriate measures to minimize fire-related risks. The assessment process involves evaluating the likelihood of fire occurrence and its potential to cause harm, considering factors like ignition sources, combustible materials, and oxygen availability. Key improvements include hazard avoidance, technological upgrades, and proper staff training on emergency procedures. The report also outlines common causes of fire, awareness levels of residents, evacuation guidance, and a fire safety training checklist. Regular maintenance of escape routes, fire warning systems, firefighting instruments, and emergency lighting is crucial. The document further discusses fire detection methods, warning signs, and ways to reduce false alarms. Finally, the report underscores the need for consistent equipment maintenance and replacements to ensure optimal fire safety in care homes. Desklib provides this and other solved assignments for students.

FIRE INSTRUCTIONS
FOR A CARE HOME

Fire safety risk assessment
Fire safety is an important measure in order to restrain the
occurrence of loss of life and property. The main aim is to
ensure the following aspects:
• To identify the possible hazards and take appropriate actions
to reduce the risk so that the harm that can be caused due to
fire can be reduced. So that damage through it can be reduced
to the minimum.
• To ensure that adequate fire safety measures and management
policies are adopted by the organization. It helps in ensuring
the safety of the residents who are living in the building of
care home.

Fire safety risk assessment process

Evaluation of the risk involved
It is important to evaluate the risk attached to the fire so that
appropriate judgement for adequate amount of fire measures
can be made There are the two main components which are at
risk. They are:
Likelihood of occurrence of fire:
The likelihood of fire may be less if there are fewer sources of
ignition that are available in the care home. Further, keeping
the combustible material away from fire sources can also help
in reducing the likelihood.

Contd..
Potential of fire to cause any death or injury:
There are further different factors which can assess the
potentiality of death of injury such as, if the fire has occurred on
the ground floor causing blockage of routes for the people
staying at first floor of the building. Further, factors such as fire
is the escape space as well blocking the passage, spread in fire
through vertical shafts, ventilators, walls, partitions, ceilings etc.

Implementation of improvements in care
homes
It is important to avoid hazards and plan for potential risk of fire
in the building if it is reasonable and practically possible. The
improvements in the building work can be performed considering
all the fire safety measures and adequate amount of evacuation
doors. Further, replacing the ignition measures from dangerous to
non-dangerous ones so that the event can be avoided. In addition
to this, up gradation in the technological aspects is another
important improvement in the care home.

Contd..
Significant changes in the current furniture, alteration in the
internal layout, avoiding the storage of combustible substances
etc are other measures to be taken by the care homes in order
to avoiding fire. Moreover, the employees in the organization
must have appropriate instruction of how they are going to act
if at any time fire will occur in the building.

Common causes of fire
There are three main causes of fire. They are:
• Ignition sources: Material of smoke such as, matches, lighters
and cigarettes. Some other sources include, cooking
equipment, candles or open flame instruments, electrical
instruments etc.
• Fuel: There are various material that acts as a fuel to fire.
Some of these kinds of elements include, textiles, flammable
liquids such as, white spirits, cooking oil, disposable cigarette
lighters, adhesives etc. It also considers wood, paper,
cardboards, flammable gases such as Liquefied Petroleum Gas
(LPG) which catches fire and tends to aggravate it.

Contd..
• Oxygen: It is the main source which catches fire. It can be due
to natural air flow through, doors, windows, Air conditioners
etc.

Awareness level of the residents
• People in the care home must be aware of how the fire bell
sounds.
• People must know from where they need to rush, that is the
emergency doors, lift or escalators.
• People must be aware of the use of extinguishers and its
placement as well.

When the sound of fire alarm is heard
• All the member must proceed towards fire panel.
• All the kitchen instruments and electronic appliances must be
switched off and then the fire panel must be reported about the
incident.
• A member of the staff must be allocated the duty to inform the
fire service for help.
• Other staff members must be indulged in evacuating the
building from the area which is safe and not harm the
residents.

Guidance to evacuation
There must be certain process through which evacuation can
made by the staff members involved in it. The service will be
provided in the following order:
• People with disabilities
• Older people
• Children
• Women
• Young people