New fire safety rules - Club officials be warned!

[<<] [>>] by Klim Seabright
17th August 2006 (CqE Official News)

New fire safety rules affecting all non-domestic premises in England and Wales will come into force on 1 October 2006. All clubs must by law carry out a fire risk assessment on their premises.

Your club secretary will have received a document called "HM Government - Fire Safety Law" in a brown and red envelope (easily dismissed as a circular), which suggests a process for analysing your risk and formulating a safety plan. It is published by the Department of Communities and Local Government and the information and checklists can be found on the Web at www.communities.gov.uk/../

I am most grateful to Peter Francis of Cheltenham Croquet Club, who offers his Health and Safety Assessment survey sheet, which I am sure you will find a very useful model on which to base your own assessment. You should bear in mind that Peter's model is all-encompassing (not only to do with fire) and that Cheltenham CC is a big Club and may have a wide range of safety issues.