Fire Safety in Residential Care Homes

The April 2007 revision of Approved Document B specifically addresses means of escape from Residential Care homes for the first time. This is long overdue, but some of the guidance may pose questions.

Para 3.52 allows sprinklers to compensate for a lack of self-closers/swing free devices to bedroom doors, to increase bedroom sub-compartments beyond a 10 bedroom maximum, and to have more than one bed in a bedroom. But where sprinklers are provided it does not clarify how many bedrooms it is possible to have in a sub-compartment – how many is too many is open to debate.

The overall picture is further complicated by a subsequent August 2007 report ‘Sprinkler Effectiveness in Care Homes’ – written by the BRE on behalf of the DCLG. The report notes that many fires involving the elderly often include bedclothes or nightwear – often being fatal or causing very serious injuries. The BRE looked at different sprinkler systems and scenarios, and concluded that ‘normal’ sprinklers are unlikely to operate quickly enough to save the occupant of a bedroom where their nightwear or bedding is involved, but that they should save other people within the room because tenability limits for heat/hot gases are not exceeded.

Different systems were tested, with the most effective being a sprinkler linked to a smoke detector to give the earliest possible activation. However, such a system is more complicated and expensive than a ‘normal’ sprinkler system, and would be susceptible to frequent false alarms which may cause distress or even actual harm to elderly residents (e.g. as a result of shock or pneumonia). But the report did suggest a perceptible increase in confidence where sprinklers are provided.