Description of PAS 79-1:2020 2020

This part of PAS 79 gives recommendations and corresponding examples of documentation for undertaking, and recording the significant findings of, fire risk assessments in non-domestic premises and parts of non-domestic premises for which fire risk assessments are required by legislation.

In the case of mixed-use premises, comprising, for example, shops or offices on lower levels of the building, with flats on the uppermost levels, PAS 79-2 is applicable in relation to the flats.

NOTE 1 In such mixed-use premises there might be a need for fire protection systems that would not normally be applicable in commercial premises, such as evacuation alert systems for use by the fire and rescue service (see PAS 79-2:2020, 3.22).

This part of PAS 79 is applicable to peer-to-peer rented accommodation to the extent that such accommodation falls within the scope of the relevant fire safety legislation (see 3.77) and to premises used solely for short-term letting of flats (with letting periods ranging from one day to six months).

This part of PAS 79 is not applicable to premises during the construction phase²⁾, but is applicable to vacant premises, for which a fire risk assessment is required. It is also applicable to residential care homes.

This part of PAS 79 is not applicable to:

1. a single-family private dwelling;

2. a shared house or a house in multiple occupation;

3. the common parts of blocks of flats or maisonettes, sheltered housing and extra care housing; and

4. supported housing.

NOTE 2 Recommendations for fire risk assessments for all forms of the housing described above, other than a single-family dwelling, or a shared house in England and Wales, are given in PAS 79-2.

NOTE 3 Attention is drawn to Health Technical Memorandum 05-03 Part K [36], which provides guidance, for complex healthcare premises in England and Wales, on fire risk assessments in areas to which patients have access. In Scotland, equivalent guidance is given in Scottish Health Technical Memorandum 86 [37].

NOTE 4 For residential care premises in Northern Ireland, attention is drawn to Health Technical Memorandum 84 [38], which provides guidance on fire risk assessment in these premises.

The methodology in this PAS provides a structured approach to fire risk assessment for people with knowledge of the principles of fire safety; it is not a guide to fire safety.

The recommended approach to carrying out fire risk assessments is intended to determine the risk-proportionate fire precautions required to protect occupants of non-domestic premises, including employees, contractors, visitors and members of the public, and to protect people in the immediate vicinity of the premises. The fire risk assessment is not necessarily sufficient to address the safety of firefighters in the event of a fire on the premises, as firefighters are not “relevant persons” within the meaning of the relevant fire safety legislation.

The recommended methodology is not intended to address protection of property (the premises and their contents) or the environment, or to address protection of a business, process or activity against interruption. Premises with special hazards, with the potential for high risk to life (e.g. chemical or nuclear hazards), require consideration of additional factors associated with these hazards and their means of control, and are beyond the scope of this PAS. However, in all such cases, this part of PAS 79 might form the basis for development of an appropriate fire risk assessment process and the documentation of the significant findings of the process.

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