Fire door legislation in England is four instruments, and reading which is law and which is guidance is half the job. The Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 is law: the duties on the responsible person. The Fire Safety (England) Regulations 2022 are law: Regulation 10's checks, with the Home Office fact sheet as guidance on them. The Building Regulations are law, with Approved Document B as the guidance on meeting them. The Housing Act 2004 is law for HMO licensing. All cited below. The fire door regulations register on this site records which instruments apply to each building.
The Order
Made under the Regulatory Reform Act, applying to non-domestic premises and the common parts of residential buildings in England and Wales. Article 9, the risk assessment; article 17, maintenance of precautions; enforcement by the fire and rescue authority. Fire doors are precautions under it.
The 2022 Regulations
Made under the Order after the Grenfell Tower Inquiry's phase one recommendations. Regulation 10 is the fire door regulation: quarterly common-part checks and annual best-endeavour flat entrance door checks in multi-occupied residential buildings over 11 metres, and information to residents, as the fact sheet describes.
The Building Regulations and Approved Document B
The Building Regulations are the law for building work; Approved Document B is statutory guidance on the fire safety requirements, in two volumes. Following it is the usual way to show compliance for where fire doors go. The certification and installation records on this site are the evidence the built doors meet it.
The Housing Act 2004
Part 2 licenses houses in multiple occupation, and the licence conditions and the local authority's standards say what fire doors an HMO needs. The register on this site records the licence per property. IgnisTrack lists £49 per user per month on its pricing page, cited below; DoorsetBook Pro is £49 per month for the whole building portfolio.
Questions people ask about fire door legislation
Is the fact sheet law?
No; it is the Home Office's guidance on Regulation 10, which is the law. This site cites the fact sheet because it states the regulation's requirements plainly.
Does the legislation apply in Scotland?
The Order and the 2022 Regulations do not; Scotland has its own fire safety law. The register records the nation.
Is the register free?
Yes, without an account.
Sources
- The Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005, legislation.gov.uk
- Home Office, fact sheet: fire doors (Regulation 10), Fire Safety (England) Regulations 2022
- Fire safety: Approved Document B, gov.uk
- Housing Act 2004, Part 2, licensing of houses in multiple occupation, legislation.gov.uk
- IgnisTrack, pricing