Fire safety information regarding your social housing stock.

The request was successful.

Gareth Thomas Jones

Dear Swindon Borough Council,

I am currently studying a BSC in Property Development at the University of Portsmouth. My course requires me to write a research paper on a specific question. The following questions have been prepared to help assess the extent to which the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 has affected fire safety in blocks of flats in the last 10 years.
As a local authority with a social housing stock you have been selected as a potential candidate to answer questions that will assist me in answering my problem.
I understand the Freedom of Information requests can be time consuming and if to time consuming they will be refused. I have written the questions below so they can easily be answered.

Before responding please read the information at the end of this email below the questions.
Responses if requested will be kept confidential and any names will be removed. If you would prefer to respond via email please send responses to [email address].

Questions:

1. How many properties do you have in your housing stock?

2. How many of these properties are located in blocks of flats?

3. How many blocks of flats do you have in your housing stock that are governed by the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005?

4. How many of these blocks of flats have had a fire risk assessment conducted since the 1st of October 2006?

5. How many of these blocks of flats currently have a valid fire risk assessment?

6. If you do not have valid FRA’s on all of your blocks of flats that are bound by the FSO 2005 please can you provide a brief justification as to why this is not the case?

7. Does your fire safety policy require reviews of existing fire risk assessments? And if so how regularly and are they actually reviewed?

8. Do you currently have an on-going refurbishment programme or policy that includes fire safety upgrades in your blocks of flats?

9. In 2015-2016 what was the approximate yearly spend on repairs and maintenance, including major refurbishment schemes on your social housing stock?

10. In 2015 -2016 what was your approximate yearly spend on fire safety upgrades in communal areas of blocks of flats?

11. What fire safety improvement is your main focus?

12. In the last year how many of the following have been served by your local Fire Authority:
a. Notice of Deficiency
b. Alterations Notice
c. Enforcement Notice
d. Prohibition Notice

13. How many properties currently have a in date smoke detector installed?

14. In the last 5 years how many fires have you had in properties or communal areas of blocks of flats? How many of these have caused death or serious injury.

A review of the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 and the impact on fire safety within tenanted purpose built blocks of flats constructed prior to the adoption of current legislation.

You are being invited to take part in a research study. Before you take part it is important for you to understand why the research is being done and what it will involve. Please take time to read the following information carefully.

Dissertation Aim

The aim of the Dissertation is to assess the extent to which the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 has affected fire safety in blocks of flats in the last 10 years.

A number of councils have been sent Freedom of Information Requests containing a number of questions that when answered will assist me with completing the aim. Approximately 87 councils will be initially sent FOI requests.

When taking part:
Please answer the questions to the best of your ability.

The disadvantages or ‘costs’ involved in taking part in the study are:
The costs associated with retrieval of the information.

The benefits furthering our understanding of the topic involved in taking part in the study are:…

The Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 was introduced 10 years ago, there has not been a review regarding its impact since 2009. This assessed its initial effectiveness. The study will review whether the requirements of the Act are being implemented by building owners.

Confidentiality or Anonymisation

The responses you provide if requested will be kept anonymous.

If you wish for your responses from the FOI request to be kept anonymous please email the response to [email address] and instruct that this is the case.

The results of the research study
The results of the Freedom of Information Requests will form part of a dissertation for the degree of BSc in Property Development a degree of the University of Portsmouth. A copy of the published material can be obtained from the author and the University of Portsmouth.

Who is organising the research?
I am conducting this research as a student of the University of Portsmouth through the School of Civil Engineering and Surveying in the Faculty of Technology.

Who has reviewed the study?
The Faculty of Technology Research Ethics Committee of the University of Portsmouth has approved the research.

Contact for further information
Please contact for further information:
Gareth Jones
Email: [email address]
or
Phone: 07593335901
at any time for further information.
A copy of the dissertation can be obtained from the University
Thank you for taking the time to read this important information sheet.

Yours faithfully,

Gareth Thomas Jones

Customer Services, Swindon Borough Council

Dear Mr Jones

Thank you for your email dated 16th December 2016

I can confirm your request has been forwarded on to our FOI department for response.

Thank you.
Customer Services
Swindon Borough Council
Wat Tyler House
Swindon SN1 2JG
Phone: 01793 445500
E-mail: [Swindon Borough Council request email]
Website: www.swindon.gov.uk

show quoted sections

Janet Regan, Swindon Borough Council

Gareth

 

Apologies in the delay in getting this information to you.  Please see
below for your response.

 

Janet Regan ([email address])

PA to Bernie Brannan, Corporate Director Communities and Place

PA to Michael Ash, Head of Housing and Community Safety

Swindon Borough Council

Telephone:  01793 464377

Mobile:  07825 862101

Fax:  01793 463306

Website:  [1]www.swindon.gov.uk

 

 

Please see information below.

 

Questions:

 

1.         How many properties do you have in your housing stock?

10,268

 

2.         How many of these properties are located in blocks of flats?

4084

 

3.         How many blocks of flats do you have in your housing stock that
are governed by the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005?

All

 

4.         How many of these blocks of flats have had a fire risk
assessment conducted since the 1st of October 2006?

All

 

5.         How many of these blocks of flats currently have a valid fire
risk assessment?

All

 

6.         If you do not have valid FRA’s on all of your blocks of flats
that are bound by the FSO 2005 please can you provide a brief
justification as to why this is not the case?

n/a

 

7.         Does your fire safety policy require reviews of existing fire
risk assessments? And if so how regularly and are they actually reviewed?

Yes, the fire safety policy states that the review frequency is determined
from the Fire Risk Assessment carried out; based on the risk priorities
(high, medium, low).

 

8.         Do you currently have an on-going refurbishment programme or
policy that includes fire safety upgrades in your blocks of flats?

Yes

 

9.         In 2015-2016 what was the approximate yearly spend on repairs
and maintenance, including major refurbishment schemes on your social
housing stock?

15.7m

 

10.       In 2015 -2016 what was your approximate yearly spend on fire
safety upgrades in communal areas of blocks of flats?

£100,000

 

11.       What fire safety improvement is your main focus?

Early detection, Compartmentation and Leaseholder flat entrance doors

 

12.       In the last year how many of the following have been served by
your local Fire Authority:

a.         Notice of Deficiency  0

b.         Alterations Notice  0

c.         Enforcement Notice 0

d.         Prohibition Notice 0

 

13.       How many properties currently have a in date smoke detector
installed?

100% have smoke detectors in, these are tested as part of the annual gas
safety check and updated on the 10year fixed wire testing.

 

14.       In the last 5 years how many fires have you had in properties or
communal areas of blocks of flats? How many of these have caused death or
serious injury.

Over the last 2 years we are aware of 16 fires of which there were no
cases of death or serious injury.

 

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reflect those of Swindon Borough Council unless explicitly stated
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References

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1. http://www.swindon.gov.uk/