Fire Safety Resident Responsibilities

What do fire doors do, and how do they work?

Did you know that the front door to your home and any doors along corridors and stairs are fire doors? Fire doors fulfil a life-saving role in preventing the spread of smoke and fire for a period dependent on their fire classification. Fire Doors help keep the levels of smoke and toxic gasses contained within the room of origin and prevent fire from moving into escape routes long enough to allow people to escape and for the fire and rescue services to gain access.

Fire doors will prevent fire moving into escape routes, and from one room to another. Most fire doors, when installed and used properly, will hold back a fire for 30 minutes or more, by which time the Fire & Rescue service would aim to be on site. For this to work, fire doors must be kept closed.

Is it ever ok to leave fire doors open?

A fire door, in the event of a fire, will only work if the door is closed. Fire doors are often wedged open, perhaps to help with a busy flow of people, or to keep air flowing in hot weather. But whatever the reason, fire doors should not be left open. Wedging open fire doors can, and has, caused fire to spread rapidly, destroying entire buildings and decreasing the time people have to evacuate safely.

In the event of a fire, if it was found that a fire door was wedged open, it could have serious legal implications including fines, and reduce the likelihood of a successful insurance claim to cover the loss of possessions or damages to property.

If it is necessary to prop or wedge open a fire door for the purpose of moving equipment for a short duration; the prop or wedge must immediately be removed on completion of the task in hand; an open fire door must never be left unattended. Next time you see a fire door wedged open; stop, think, and act. Close the door.

Did you know that the gas from professional pest control products can be poisonous and lead to explosions and fires when not used properly?

These products have caused two fatal and life-changing incidents in Tower Hamlets. One of these incidents resulted in the death of an 11-year-old girl. The incidents are believed to be caused by unexperienced individuals using professional pest control products.

Tower Hamlets has launched the campaign, Kill Pests Not People . It aims to keep everyone safer by

• making sure residents avoid buying pest control products from online marketplaces with multiple sellers.
• ensuring that residents don’t buy from sellers where they can’t be sure if the product is suitable for amateur use.
• and only purchase from reputable UK sellers.

 Lutfur Rahman, Mayor of Tower Hamlets, said:

“Pest control products sold in the UK go through rigorous testing to make sure they’re safe for amateur use. When people use pest control chemicals that are only meant for professional use or have been shipped in from outside of the UK, they can harm more than just pests”.

You can get in touch with us to report pests - we can provide treatment to remove infestations such as mice, rats, or bed bugs. As well as preventative treatments such as sewer baiting. While your service charges almost only cover communal areas, pest control in rented homes (non-leaseholder) is included in this charge as it’s likely to spread to your neighbours if not treated quickly.

The council also has an affordable pest control service that has experienced trained officers and effective treatments and can give advice on how you can stop pests from coming back.

Report pests in your home

Tower Hamlets Council Pest Control Service

Pest control products: important buying advice

Your home will have its own fire alarm and we recommend you that you test it weekly. It only takes a few seconds and could save your life.  

Most of our buildings follow a 'stay put policy' (you can find your fire notice in your communal entrance hall), this means that you are advised to stay in your home, if it's not affected by the fire. It may also mean that there are no fire alarms in some of your communal areas. This may be because of:

• Location: the detectors in internal lobbies may not be linked into individual homes (where fires normally begin) or to the stairs and landings (the main means of escape)
• Confusion: the smoke alarms in the stairwells can cause confusion on whether to stay put or evacuate
• Regulations: the design of the alarms and smoke ventilation needed to be brought up to current regulations standard and fire brigade requirements

How 'Stay put' buildings are designed to work in a fire:

• Residential buildings are built to enable residents to 'stay put' if there is a fire elsewhere in your building
• The Fire Service will put out the fire in the home where it started. You should not leave your home if it is not affected by the fire
• 'Staying put' will help to ensure that the escape route is clear for the Fire Service
• Your lobby, stairs, doors, walls and front door are all designed to provide at least one hour of fire protection
• Your escape route and stairs have smoke ventilation and emergency lighting if needed
• Your home will have it's own alarm to let you know if your home is affected 
• If the staircase escape route has smoke in it, then smoke vents windows at the top of your building will open and let it out

Every building has had a Fire Risk Assessment, which you can find below. We frequently maintain and test your fire systems including smoke alarms, smoke vents, doors and walls to ensure they are working should the worst happen.

Find your Fire Risk Assessment

• Our Board
• Resident Voice Panel (read more about RVP here)
• Executive team
• Regular management reports on FRA compliance
• Officers reporting issues impacting on assurance
• Internal Audit conducted by external auditors every 3 years
• Review of contractor performance

2023 has seen the most e-bike and e-scooter fires in London than ever before. The blazes are often caused by the failure of a lithium battery, which can start fires within minutes. Many of the devices that catch light are being charged at the time. The London Fire Brigade has shared the following guidance. It’s important to adhere to this for the safety of you and your neighbours.

Reduce the risk of overheating

• Batteries can get warm during their use. Allow them to cool down before attempting to re-charge.
• Batteries should always be charged on hard flat surfaces where heat can escape.
• Batteries can also pose a risk if they have been damaged, so try to ensure they are not getting knocked around while in use or while being carried.
• Batteries should also never be exposed to extremes of temperature.

Follow the instructions

• Always follow manufacturers’ instructions when charging
• Never leave it charging unattended or while you’re sleeping
• You should always make sure you unplug your charger once it’s finished charging.
• Always use the correct charger for your batteries and buy any replacements from a reputable seller.

Where to charge your batteries

• Never block your escape route with e-bikes or e-scooters
• Store and charge them somewhere away from a main through route or exit
• Make sure you and your family have an escape plan in place in the event of a fire. Always call 999, never try to fight the fire yourself.

E-bikes/scooters should never be left in communal areas where they might block escape routes. If you spot this in your building, please report it to our customer service team.

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