A Fire Emergency Evacuation Plan (FEEP) is a document designed to include all the actions that staff should take in the event of a fire, such as evacuating the building and calling the fire brigade. An FEEP is recommended for all new and existing businesses and buildings irrespective of age, method of construction or materials used. It is created for the safety of all staff and building occupants and, therefore, should be shared around so that everyone knows where to evacuate when the alarm sounds.
A Fire Emergency Evacuation Plan (FEEP) should contain one of two types of notices, these are:
General Fire Notice: This is a single-page document which outlines the actions staff should take upon finding a fire or the alarm being raised. This is for smaller premises/businesses where the risk of a fire is low. The general fire notice should then be posted in an area where all employees are able to read it and become familiar with it. This could be in a staff room, staff kitchen as well as being included in staff handbooks and new starter packs.
Staff Fire Notice: This is a more in-depth document designed for buildings with a higher fire risk. While the principle is the same, to make sure staff know what to do should a fire occur, this document also includes more detailed fire safety information. Staff fire notices also take into account the results from the fire risk assessment.
A Personal Emergency Plan (PEEP) is designed for people who may need assistance to evacuate during an emergency such as a fire or other hazard.
Personal emergency evacuation plans (PEEP) will ensure that you’ve planned for the following:
A quick way to find out if someone needs a personal emergency evacuation plan (PEEP) is by asking the question, “Can this person evacuate the building in an emergency without any assistance from others?”.
For business owners, the safety of employees and property in the event of a fire is paramount. A fire in the workplace has the potential to cause huge disruption to the business, employees and customers. The bigger the business, the higher the risk.
Our fire evacuation plans are extremely thorough, in-depth and designed to keep your staff safe should a fire occur. Our highly trained and experienced fire safety team will visit your premises and create a fire evacuation plan suitable for your business.
A Fire Evacuation Plan (FEEP) should include:
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Get in touchPersonal emergency evacuation plans are specific to each individual who could not evacuate the building in an emergency without assistance.
Each person’s disability affects them in different ways, so their needs will all be slightly different, which is why each plan should be tailored to the individual, and their input should be included.
Some examples of people who may need their own evacuation plan include people with a:
An often-forgotten example of someone who may require a personal evacuation plan is people with temporary injuries and changes. This can include someone who has broken their leg and now needs a wheelchair or crutches or someone in the late stages of pregnancy who may take longer to evacuate.
There are four main types of fire evacuation strategies that take into account different building sizes, layouts and construction materials. The most appropriate option for your building will be included in your fire evacuation plan.
The four common fire evacuation strategies are:
Simultaneous evacuation is where everyone exits the building at the same time, in an orderly fashion, after hearing an alarm signal. This process is used in buildings that are small to medium-sized and don’t have many floors. This is the most common fire evacuation strategy that most people will be familiar with.
Vertical or horizontal phased evacuation is when certain areas of the building are evacuated before other parts. In a vertical phased evacuation, the floors/people closest to the fire and those directly above the fire would be evacuated first. The floors/people below the fire would then be evacuated as they are at less risk of becoming trapped.
A horizontal evacuation works in a similar fashion and is more common in large buildings with one or two floors, such as care homes and hospitals. In this approach, those closest to the fire are evacuated first, and those furthest away will stay put until others have evacuated.
Both vertical and horizontal evacuation strategies will require a two-tone alarm system or a system capable of delivering voice messages. This is due to the fact that people will need to be warned there is a fire, and they will also know when it’s their turn to evacuate.
Vertical and horizontal evacuations will take additional time compared to a simultaneous evacuation, and therefore, additional safety measures may need to be taken. These can include options such as fire control points, fire compartmentation or sprinkler systems.
In some situations, it’s not possible to raise a general alarm and have entire buildings evacuated at the same time, for example, cinemas, theatres and sports stadiums. This is due to the fact that due to the number of people in attendance, pre-arranged plans need to be put in place for a safe, orderly evacuation.
In these circumstances, a “silent” staff alarm should be raised so that staff are able to put evacuation plans in place and evacuate those in the greatest danger first before sounding a general alarm.
A silent alarm can include:
In some special circumstances, it might be required that the occupants of the building remain in place and wait for the fire service to extinguish the fire or evacuate them. This is particularly true of hospitals and care homes where people may be confined to their beds, immobile or on life support.
Temporary relocation to a safer part of the building may be advised for those closest to the fire and for those with the most mobility, especially if fire compartmentation of the building has been carried out.
Due to the high-risk nature of this strategy, you should only use it on advice from a competent person and the fire service.
Our fire strategy sets a clear framework for coherent fire safety and simple but effective fire evacuation plans. Our approach is based on showing compliance with the applicable fire safety legislation, business and property protection objectives and insurers’ requirements. This means a warning and escape plan, internal fire spread, external fire spread and access and facilities for the fire service, along with the fire safety management requirements for the building. We are in the business of keeping you and your colleagues safe.
In order to carry out your Fire Emergency Evacuation Plan (FEEP), a First Intervention Fire Consultant will attend your site and assess the available fire safety management, prevention and protection information to produce a single retrospective fire safety document based on The Building Regulations (Approved Document B) and reference BS9999.
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