Fire prevention and protection statistics, England, April 2020 to March 2021

Question 1

1. Key results

Accepted Answer

The number of Home Fire Safety Checks (HFSCs) has been declining since financial year 2010 to 2011. In financial year 2020 to 2021, FRSs and their partners completed just over 169,500 face to face (FTF) HFSCs. In financial year 2019 to 2020 FRSs and their partners completed just under 589,000 HFSCs. The number of HFSCs undertaken in financial year 2020 to 2021 was heavily affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and associated restrictions.

The total number of Fire Safety Audits has been declining since financial year 2010 to 2011. In financial year 2020 to 2021 FRSs carried out 34,423 Fire Safety Audits, down from 48,414 in the financial year 2019 to 2020. The decrease is likely to have been affected by COVID-19 restrictions.

Question 2

2. Fire prevention

Accepted Answer

Fire and rescue services (FRSs) undertake prevention activities, which provide information and advice and aim to encourage fire safety behaviours. These educate people on the steps to be taken to prevent the occurrence of a fire and increase the survivability when involved in a fire. This section focuses on Home Fire Safety Checks (HFSCs, also known as Home Fire Risk Checks), Safe and Well visits (SWVs) and smoke alarm ownership.

2.1 Key results

In financial year 2020 to 2021:

FRSs and their partners completed 169,554 face to face HFSCs, in addition they completed 90,114 virtual HFSCs, whilst in financial year 2019 to 2020 the total number of HFSCs conducted by FRS and partners was 588,666 (Source: FIRE1201)
FRSs and their partners completed 98,478 face to face SWVs as part of a HFSC, in addition there were 57,706 SWVs conducted virtually as part of the total HFSCs, whilst in financial year 2019 to 2020 344,815 SWVs were conducted (Source: FIRE1201)
FRSs and their partners completed 97,204 HFSCs targeted at people aged 65 and over, in addition they completed 28,890 virtual HFSCs to people aged 65 and over, whilst in financial year 2019 to 2020, 327,314 HFSCs were targeted at people aged 65 and over (Source: FIRE1201)
FRSs and their partners completed 69,248 HFSCs targeted at disabled people, in addition they completed 22,879 virtual HFSCs targeted at disabled people, whilst in financial year 2019 to 2020, 173,413 HFSCs were targeted at disabled people (Source: FIRE1201)
as of most recent data in financial year 2019 to 2020, 91 per cent of households owned a working smoke alarm, no change since financial year 2018 to 2019, a three percentage points increase since financial year 2014 to 2015 (88% in financial year 2014 to 2015) and an increase of 15 percentage points since 2001 (the earliest date for which these data are available) (Source: FIRE0701)

FRSs have been conducting fire prevention work for a number of years and in a number of different areas. This work became a statutory duty for FRSs in 2004 with the introduction of the Fire and Rescue Services Act. Typical prevention activities include: Home Fire Safety Checks (HFSCs), Safe and Well visits (SWVs), arson prevention, promotional work with young people and other vulnerable groups as well as other campaigns and initiatives. However, because of difficulties in defining some of this work (due to prevention activity taking on a wide range of forms and recording being inconsistent) and in order to minimise burdens on FRSs we have, from financial year 2018 to 2019, only collected information on HFSCs and SWVs - we no longer collect information on campaigns and initiatives. The information collected in previous years on campaigns and initiatives can be found in Table FIRE1203.

2.2 Home Fire Safety Checks (HFSCs) and Safe and Well Visits (SWVs^{[footnote 1]})

HFSCs are often targeted towards the more vulnerable members of the community, including older people and those with disabilities, and aim to offer bespoke fire safety advice based on their household and lifestyle which can mitigate the risk of fire. These visits can result in the installation of smoke alarms and safety recommendations such as moving or removing furniture which may be hazardous. Many FRSs now conduct HFSCs as part of a wider SWV, which can cover additional factors such as fall risk assessment, smoking cessation, cold homes and fuel poverty and a range of other health and community issues depending on local arrangements.

During the COVID-19 pandemic throughout the financial year 2020 to 2021, the National Fire Chiefs Council (NFCC) published a series of position statements on Prevention strategic intentions, which took into account the COVID-19 management measures in place. The most recent statement can be found here. These statements resulted in a halt to face to face (or over the threshold) HFSCs in the first lockdown and a transition to virtual HFSCs and limited face to face visits throughout the remainder of the year. The Home Office collected the number of virtual (online or telephone) HFSCs, which are presented separately in this release. Due to the changes made as a result of COVID-19, it is not appropriate or meaningful to make direct comparisons between this year and last year’s data.

At a national level, the number of HFSCs that FRSs complete has been on a general downward trend since the data were first collected in financial year 2010 to 2011 (see figure 2.1). In contrast, the number of HFSCs completed on the two groups the Home Office collect data on (people aged 65 and over, disabled people) both increased over the same time but have shown large decreases this year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

2.3 Number of HFSCs

In financial year 2020 to 2021, FRSs and their partners completed 169,554 HFSCs face to face and 90,114 virtually (259,668 in total).

Of these:

58 per cent of HFSCs were targeted at households containing people aged 65 and over or with a disability
the vast majority (97%) of HFSCs were completed by FRSs directly with the remaining three per cent (8,382) completed by partners
60 per cent (156,184) were undertaken as part of a SWV

FRS partners - includes organisations such as: Home Improvement Services, Education, Social Services, Voluntary Sector, Housing, Primary Care Trusts.

Figure 2.1: Total numbers of HFSCs and targeted HFSCs completed by FRSs, England, financial year 2010 to 2011 to financial year 2020 to 2021

2.4 Staff carrying out HFSCs and SWVs

Data on the number and role of staff carrying out face to face HFSCs and SWVs were first collected in financial year 2018 to 2019, and this is the second year that the data are of sufficient quality for publication. Out of the 45 FRSs, 44 were able to quantify the number of staff carrying out these visits.

In financial year 2020 to 2021, an average of 1.78 staff carried out each face to face HFSC. Almost two thirds (64%) of staff carrying out HFSCs were firefighters. The remaining HFSCs were carried out by a mixture of fire control partners, community safety advocates, FRS volunteers and non-operational staff. Non-operational staff having the second highest contribution (20%). For face to face SWVs, an average of 1.3 staff carried out each visit, with 50 per cent being firefighters. (Table FIRE1201a)

2.5 Smoke alarm ownership

Data on the proportion of households with a smoke alarm have been collected since the 1980s from a variety of sources, and data on ownership of a working smoke alarm have been collected from 2001. Since financial year 2008 to 2009 the English Housing Survey (EHS) has been the primary source of information on smoke alarm ownership. The exact questions asked change each year but have previously included ownership of a smoke alarm, ownership of a working smoke alarm, smoke alarm testing habits and carbon monoxide alarm ownership.

In financial year 2019 to 2020, 91 per cent of households owned a working smoke alarm, no change since financial year 2018 to 2019, a three percentage points increase since financial year 2014 to 2015 (88% in financial year 2014 to 2015) and an increase of 15 percentage points since 2001 (the earliest date for which these data are available). (Source: FIRE0701)

Although 91 per cent of households reported owning a working smoke alarm, 25 per cent say they take the time to test it at least monthly.

Figure 2.2: Percentage of households owning a smoke alarm or working smoke alarm, England & Wales or England, 1988 to financial year 2019 to 2020

Question 3

3. Fire protection

Accepted Answer

Fire protection refers to FRSs’ statutory role in ensuring public safety in the wider built environment and involves auditing and, where necessary, enforcing regulatory compliance, primarily but not exclusively in respect of the provisions of the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 (FSO). This section of the release specifically focuses on Fire Safety Audits, short audits and building regulation consultations.

3.1 Key results

In financial year 2020 to 2021:

FRSs carried out 34,423 Fire Safety Audits, down from 48,414 in the financial year 2019 to 2020 likely to have been affected by COVID-19 restrictions (Source: FIRE1202)
25,797 (75%) of audits were deemed satisfactory (Source: FIRE1202)
the 34,423 audits carried out were in two per cent of premises known to FRSs. (Source: FIRE1202)
the most common type of premises to be audited was “purpose-built flats, 4 or more storeys” 7,183 or 21 per cent of all Fire Safety Audits (Source: FIRE1204)
there were 1,331 formal notices issued, (compared with 2,295 in financial year 2019 to 2020) comprising 882 enforcement notices, 357 prohibition notices, 59 alteration notices and 33 prosecutions (Source: FIRE1202)
there were 13,035 short audits completed (38% of all audits recorded), these audits were conducted by 37 of the 45 FRSs that carry out this format of audit

3.2 Number of Fire Safety Audits

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic restrictions in financial year 2020 to 2021, the National Fire Chiefs Council published Guidance on carrying out desktop appraisals. Where a remote desktop appraisal of fire safety measures has been carried out and recorded in accordance with CFOA Short Audit guidance, and there are no outstanding fire safety issues, this activity has been recorded in FRS returns. Desktop appraisals have been included in the total number of short audits in this release and accompanying tables.

In financial year 2020 to 2021, FRSs carried out 34,423 Fire Safety Audits of which 13,035 were short audits or desktop appraisals (37 out of the 45 FRSs carry out short audits). In the financial year 2019 to 2020, 48,414 audits were completed. Since financial year 2010 to 2011 there has been a general decline in the number of Fire Safety Audits that FRSs complete, however, the drop in financial year 2020 to 2021 is likely to be due to COVID-19 restrictions.

Figure 3.1: Number of Fire Safety Audits, England, financial year 2010 to 2011 to financial year 2020 to 2021

Fire Safety Audits

A Fire Safety Audit is a planned visit by an FRS to carry out a comprehensive assessment of the level of compliance with the requirements of the FSO in a particular premises. The FSO requires a ‘responsible person’ for a workplace or premises to which the public have access, to carry out and regularly review a fire risk assessment to ensure that the general fire precautions are adequate and appropriate, to reduce the risk from fire to employees and other relevant persons to as low as reasonably practicable. The FSO applies to the majority of non-domestic premises and the communal areas in residential buildings.

It is a matter for FRSs to determine how many audits they carry out per year, but they must have a locally determined risk-based inspection programme and management strategy in place for enforcing the FSO.

Short Audits

Since 2016 FRSs have had the option of using the short audit form, designed by the sector to support the principles of better regulation, and allow FRSs to focus their enforcement resources more effectively on higher risk premises.

A Short Audit may record an ‘unsatisfactory’ outcome where non-compliances are found that require attention but are not judged to reach the formal enforcement threshold. These may be dealt with by means of an informal Fire Safety Matters letter which may or may not require a follow-up inspection. Failure to comply with a Fire Safety Matters letter may be escalated to formal enforcement.

It is expected that the number of audits on different premises types in individual FRSs will vary from year to year depending on the local need, targeting strategies and the complexity of the specific buildings being audited. In addition, the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government set out an ambition in Parliament on 5 September 2019 to ‘significantly increase the pace of inspection activity across high rise residential and other high risk buildings’. It has been supported by the allocation of 6 million pounds in additional funding to FRSs alongside the 10 million pounds in the Protection Uplift grant.

Figure 3.2: Total number of Fire Safety Audits by FRSs, by type of building, England, financial year 2019 to 2020 and financial year 2020 to 2021 (ordered by financial year 2019 to 2020 figures)

There were 7,183 audits of purpose-built blocks of flats of four storeys or more in financial year 2020 to 2021, up from the 3,493 in financial year 2019 to 2020. Conversely, the number of Fire Safety Audits of other premises fell compared with the previous year, most likely due to a combination of changing focus of FRSs and COVID-19 restrictions, particularly for buildings that were more likely to have been closed during periods of lockdown. The property types that saw the greatest reduction in audits were HMOs (72%), public buildings (71%), licensed premises (60%), hostels and hotels (58/57% respectively) and hospitals (55%).

3.3 Outcome of Fire Safety Audits

When a Fire Safety Audit is completed, the result is categorised as either satisfactory, when no further action is taken, or unsatisfactory, when the responsible person is non-compliant with the FSO.

Figure 3.3: Proportion of Fire Safety Audits deemed satisfactory or unsatisfactory by type of building, England, financial year 2020 to 2021 (ordered by per cent satisfactory)

In financial year 2020 to 2021, 25,797 (75%) of the Fire Safety Audits were deemed satisfactory. In financial year 2019 to 2020, 31,978 (66%) of the Fire Safety Audits were satisfactory. This increase is likely due to the larger numbers of short audits, of which desktop audits are included, conducted in financial year 2020 to 2021 as a result of the COVID-19 restrictions which in turn are more likely to be satisfactory (as they are upgraded to full audits if there are major issues). As Figure 3.3, shows the premises type with the greatest proportion of satisfactory audits was “hospitals” (87%) while “houses converted to flats” (55%) and “homes of multiple occupancy” (HMO’s) (57%) had thelowest proportion. Formal notifications are issued in the most serious of cases where less formal action has failed to resolve issues of non-compliance. These are categorised within the FSO as:

Details of formal and informal notifications

Enforcement notices (Article 30) - These are served if the enforcing authority is of the opinion that the responsible person has failed to comply with any provision of the FSO or of any regulations made under it.

Prohibition notices (Article 31) - These are served on the responsible person or any other person, if the enforcing authority is of the opinion that use of premises involves or will involve a risk to relevant persons so serious that use of the premises ought to be prohibited or restricted.

Alteration notices (Article 29) - These are served on the responsible person if the enforcing authority is of the opinion that the premises constitutes a serious risk to relevant persons (whether due to the features of the premises, their use, any hazard present, or any other circumstances); or may constitute such a risk if a change is made to them or the use to which they are put.

Prosecutions (Article 32) - These are convictions for failure to comply with an alteration, enforcement or prohibition notice, or any other matter for which it is an offence under Article 32.

Informal notification - These can be issued instead of a formal notice when an outcome is unsatisfactory and the risk to relevant persons is not significant and the responsible person is willing to comply.

There were 1,331 formal notices issued in financial year 2020 to 2021, 2,295 in financial year 2019 to 2020 and 2,046 in financial year 2016 to 2017, when the data were first collected. When looking at informal notices 7,018 were issued in financial year 2020 to 2021 compared with 13,184 in financial year 2019 to 2020 and 14,353 in financial year 2016 to 2017. The reduced numbers are most likely due to the COVID-19 pandemic restricting FRS activity. For more information on formal notices see Figure 3.4.

Figure 3.4: Fire safety notices resulting from unsatisfactory Fire Safety Audits (informal and formal) issued in England, financial year 2020 to 2021

3.4 Staff employed for fire safety activities

The Home Office has collected information on the number of staff competent to carry out fire safety activities since financial year 2018 to 2019. In financial year 2020 to 2021 there were 1001.89 FTE members of staff competent to carry out audits. For a more detailed breakdown of other action types see Figure 3.5 and FS10a and FS10b of table FIRE1204. As FRS staff are likely to be competent to carry out more than one of these activities, the categories are not mutually exclusive. There are 94.6 fire engineers^{[footnote 2]}(FTE) employed by FRSs, down from 97 in the previous year.

Figure 3.5: Number of staff employed by FRSs for fire safety activities, as at 31 March 2019, 31 March 2020 and 31 March 2021

3.5 Building regulation consultations and other fire safety activity

FRSs also provide data on the number of consultations received under Building Regulations; and any other fire safety activities they undertake to support business understanding of, and compliance with, the FSO. Building regulation consultations are statutory consultations with FRSs by building control bodies under articles 45 and 46 of the FSO. The information can be found in FS2 of FIRE1204.

In financial year 2020 to 2021, FRSs carried out 41,105 building regulation consultations; a reduction, also possibly due to COVID-19, from the financial year 2019 to 2020 (50,812). The highest proportion of building regulation consultations in financial year 2020 to 2021 were for shops (16% or 6,767).

Other safety activity - This captures all fire safety activity generated by requests from others, i.e. approaches from other agencies or bodies (e.g. Ofsted), the public, and business representatives as well as any FSO related promotional or awareness raising activities generated within the FRA.

FRSs carried out 76,622 other fire safety activities in financial year 2020 to 2021 compared with 83,348 in financial year 2019 to 2020.

Question 4

4. Further information

Accepted Answer

This release contains administrative statistics about prevention and protection activities carried out by fire and rescue services (FRSs) in England. This publication also draws from other sources such as the English Housing Survey.

Fire and Rescue Incident Statistics and other Home Office statistical releases are available from the Statistics at Home Office pages on the GOV.UK website.

Data tables linked to this release and all other fire statistics releases can be found on the Home Office’s ‘Fire statistics data tables’ page. The sections above state the most relevant tables for each section. The tables can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/fire-statistics-data-tables

Guidance for using these statistics and other fire statistics outputs is available on the fire statistics collection page, found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/fire-statistics-guidance

The information published in this release is kept under review, taking into account the needs of users and burdens on suppliers and producers, in line with the Code of Practice for Statistics. If you have any comments, suggestions or enquiries, please contact the team via email using firestatistics@homeoffice.gov.uk or via the user feedback form on the fire statistics collection page.

4.1 Revisions

The figures in this release refer to activity that occurred in the financial year 2020 to 2021, the year up to and including 31 March 2021. The statistics published may not match those held locally by FRSs and revisions may occur in the future.

Home Office publish five other statistical releases covering fire and rescue services.

These include:

The Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government publish one statistical release on fire:

the English housing survey: fire and fire safety report: focuses on the extent to which the existence of fire and fire safety features vary by household and dwelling type

Fire statistics are published by the other UK nations:

Statistics for Scotland and Wales are published. Northern Ireland fire statistics are published by the Northern Ireland Fire and Rescue Service.

We’re always looking to improve the accessibility of our documents. If you find any problems, or have any feedback, relating to accessibility please email us at firestatistics@homeoffice.gov.uk

Fire prevention and protection statistics, England, April 2020 to March 2021

Applies to England

1. Key results