Fire Risk Assessment Course

Lesson 1 • Stakeholders and Communication

Identifies all parties involved in fire safety management and their roles. Establishes communication practices that support effective assessment outcomes.

Lesson 2 • Scope and Purpose of Fire Risk Assessment

Defines what a fire risk assessment is, what it must achieve, and its limits. Clarifies the difference between assessment, audit, and inspection.

Lesson 3 • Regulatory Duties and Legal Context

Explains the duty-holder concept, responsible-person obligations, and enforcement mechanisms. Links legal accountability to practical assessment responsibilities.

Lesson 1 • Fuel and Combustible Material Surveys

Covers structural materials, stored goods, waste, and furnishings as fuel loads. Teaches systematic survey methods to quantify and map combustible content.

Lesson 2 • Hazard Mapping and Documentation

Introduces floor-plan annotation, hazard registers, and photographic evidence techniques. Produces structured records that feed directly into risk evaluation.

Lesson 3 • Oxygen Supply and Ventilation Factors

Examines how building ventilation, HVAC systems, and openings affect fire growth. Connects oxygen availability to ignition likelihood and fire severity.

Lesson 1 • Personal Emergency Evacuation Plans

Explains the purpose, content, and review cycle of individual evacuation plans. Connects personal plans to the broader emergency evacuation strategy.

Lesson 2 • Vulnerable and High-Risk Groups

Focuses on mobility-impaired, sensory-impaired, and cognitively impaired individuals. Identifies specific risk factors that require tailored protective measures.

Lesson 3 • Occupant Classification and Profiling

Categorises occupants by familiarity, mobility, and awareness levels. Establishes a profiling method used throughout the risk evaluation process.

Lesson 1 • Existing Controls and Their Effectiveness

Evaluates current fire precautions before assigning a risk rating. Teaches how control quality affects the final risk score.

Lesson 2 • Prioritising Risks for Action

Converts risk ratings into an ordered action list with urgency classifications. Links evaluation outputs directly to the remedial action planning process.

Lesson 3 • Risk Rating Matrices and Tools

Introduces standard risk matrices, scoring scales, and software-assisted tools. Teaches consistent application to avoid subjective or inconsistent ratings.

Lesson 1 • Electrical and Hot Work Safety

Covers permit-to-work systems, electrical inspection regimes, and safe hot work practices. Addresses two of the most common ignition source categories in commercial premises.

Lesson 2 • Eliminating and Substituting Hazards

Applies the hierarchy of controls to remove ignition sources and replace high-risk materials. Prioritises elimination before engineering or administrative controls.

Lesson 3 • Housekeeping and Waste Management

Establishes routines that prevent fuel accumulation and maintain clear escape routes. Demonstrates how operational discipline directly reduces ignition and fire spread risk.

Lesson 1 • Emergency Lighting and Signage

Covers emergency lighting categories, escape route sign standards, and testing regimes. Ensures occupants can navigate to safety under fire and power-failure conditions.

Lesson 2 • Smoke Control and Ventilation Systems

Explains natural and mechanical smoke control strategies and their role in maintaining tenable conditions. Links smoke management to evacuation route protection.

Lesson 3 • Passive Fire Protection Principles

Covers compartmentation, fire-resisting construction, and cavity barriers. Explains how structural measures limit fire and smoke spread between building zones.

Lesson 4 • Fire Detection and Warning Systems

Examines detector types, alarm categories, and system design standards. Connects detection performance to early warning and evacuation lead time.

Lesson 1 • Evacuation for High-Risk Occupancies

Addresses evacuation challenges in hospitals, care homes, high-rise buildings, and large venues. Applies specialist strategies to premises where standard approaches are insufficient.

Lesson 2 • Evacuation Drills and Testing

Designs, conducts, and evaluates evacuation drills to validate emergency procedures. Uses drill outcomes to identify weaknesses and update the evacuation plan.

Lesson 3 • Evacuation Strategy Selection

Compares simultaneous, phased, progressive horizontal, and defend-in-place strategies. Teaches selection criteria based on building type, occupancy, and detection capability.

Lesson 4 • Assembly Points and Roll Call Procedures

Establishes criteria for assembly point location, capacity, and management. Links roll call accuracy to accountability and re-entry decision-making.

Lesson 1 • Continuous Improvement and Audit

Applies internal audit techniques to verify that fire safety measures remain effective. Uses audit findings to drive systematic improvement in risk management performance.

Lesson 2 • Staff Training and Fire Safety Culture

Designs fire safety training programmes matched to role, risk level, and occupancy type. Builds a culture of awareness that supports prevention and effective emergency response.

Lesson 3 • Review Triggers and Frequency

Identifies events and time intervals that require assessment review or full reassessment. Ensures the assessment remains current and reflects actual premises conditions.

Lesson 4 • Fire Safety Management Systems

Integrates fire risk assessment into a broader safety management framework with defined roles. Establishes governance structures that sustain compliance over time.