The housing sector continues to adapt to a raft of new guidance, statutory tightening and regulatory change associated to fire safety. As a result, leading door manufacturer JELD-WEN UK has released a new CPD resource, to support the industry’s understanding of doorsets and the steps required to improve fire safety standards.
Here, Ruth Deardon, UK Product Line Manager at JELD-WEN, outlines why there is a need to go beyond current compliance, and how stakeholders throughout a project lifecycle can work together to deliver better – and safer – outcomes.
Igniting change
Since the Grenfell Tower tragedy in 2017, we have seen a number of important step changes in guidance and legislation in relation to fire safety, with the aim to improve standards and build reassurance for tenants as part of a longer-term regulatory overhaul, which many would argue was long overdue.
The most recent change was the introduction of the Fire Safety (England) Regulations 2022, which came into force on 23 January 2023 and imposes regular, legally-mandated checks on millions of fire doors.
Although more robust legislation is a welcome step towards absolute best practice, there is still a need for the industry to go beyond compliance and strive for even higher standards in fire safety.
JELD-WEN’s recent white paper, ‘Fire Safety: Time to Shut the Door on Risk’, explored the ways in which tenants can be better protected, with suggested measures that could improve fire safety standards beyond the current compliance, including:
- A legal requirement for all fire door installations and maintenance work to be conducted by qualified installers, validated through a UKAS-accredited certification scheme.
- A mandatory standard which outlines how fire door information should be stored, updated and shared in an easily accessible digital format.
- A legal requirement to mark every fire door in the UK with its performance and the name of the manufacturer.
In support of this, JELD-WEN has launched a newly-accredited Continuing Professional Development (CPD) resource: ‘Five things to look for in fire doorsets to improve long term fire safety’.
The resource is designed to equip housing sector professionals with further knowledge around fire doorsets – which are often the first line of defence against fire risk – and how doorset manufacturers can provide support in understanding legal requirements, technical expertise, and product value.
Navigating fire safety
A fire door is one of the most critical components of limiting the spread of fire through communal buildings, and, ultimately, can help to save lives.
There is a shared responsibility throughout a project’s lifecycle to ensure the safety of a property, and the occupiers within it. However, a lack of understanding around the latest products and protocols can leave homes vulnerable to risk.
We recently conducted research of housing associations and social housing landlords, which reported challenges in delivering high quality fire safety in multi-occupancy properties. According to our survey, nine in 10 respondents had an inspection on internal fire doors in the last two years, with 50% finding a flaw. These include poorly fitted doors, damage to door closers and hardware improvements required.
Our new CPD resource aims to help address this issue, outlining five key areas of importance when procuring and using fire doorsets:
- Product testing – ensuring current standards are met
- Doorset accessories – choosing the correct hardware
- Third-party accreditation – demonstrating compliance and performance consistency
- Product traceability – engaging manufacturers to implement the ‘Golden Thread’
- Whole-life considerations – ensuring installation doesn’t compromise fire safety
Hitting the standard
As the UK’s largest door manufacturer, we offer a wide range of certified doorsets, which meet rigorous independent standards in testing, auditing and accreditation.
JELD-WEN’s SecureSET doorsets are dual tested and certified to provide 30-minute fire, smoke protection and security protection as listed under the CertiSecure (CS5059) and Certifire (CF5965) certification schemes, as well as full compliance with BS 476-22 (fire), BS 476-31 (smoke), PAS24 (enhanced security) and Approved Documents M, B, E, L and Q.
By ensuring our products meet these high standards, customers can have confidence that they will perform as needed – with complete clarity on design, manufacture and documentation.
However, it’s equally important for stakeholders across the sector to equip themselves with the knowledge and expertise they need to not only meet current compliance, but exceed it. Now’s the time for all housing sector professionals to go the extra mile for fire safety, and ensure they are firmly shutting the door on risk.
To find out more about JELD-WEN’s fire doorset CPD seminar: 5 things to look for in fire doorsets to improve long-term fire safety, visit www.jeld-wen.co.uk/advice/cpd-training.