Fire safety

Here you can find everything you need to know about fire safety including personal emergency evacuation plans and how to report a fire safety concern in your building to us.

Report a fire safety issue

Fill in an online form on our building safety webpage or you can make a report via your MyHARCA account
Email us buildingsafety@poplarharca.co.uk
Call us on 0800 035 1991

In an emergency, always ring 999.

Personal emergency evacuation plans (PEEPS)

If you have mobility or other health issues that would prevent or make it difficult to get out of your building safely in the event of fire, please let us know.

Together, we can prepare a personal plan which outlines how you can evacuate your building, as safely as possible, in the event of a fire.

Email us at housingteam@poplarharca.co.uk.

The London Fire Brigade also provides advice on how to make your own escape plan and where to get help and extra support if you need it.

What to do if there’s a fire

If there’s a fire inside your home or you’re affected by heat and smoke, wherever possible, get out as soon as you can.

Remember to follow these 4 steps:

Get everybody out immediately
Close your doors behind you
Leave via the stairs (do not use the lift)
Call 999 once you’re safely outside, and don’t go back in unless the Fire Brigade say you can.

If your home is affected but you can’t leave the building:

Call 999 and tell the Fire Brigade where you are
Use towels and sheets around the edges of doors to prevent smoke from getting in
Call for help from a window
Stay as low as possible to avoid breathing in smoke – even if it means crawling on your hands and knees.

If the fire is another part of the building, it’s usually safer to stay put in your home – unless you’re directly affected by heat and smoke, or you’ve been told by us that you should get out if there’s a fire.

Our fire safety policy

What we do and what you can do

What do you to keep my home safe from fire?

Fire risk assessments

We assess all of our buildings every year and assess some of our higher risk buildings every six months.

Testing electrics

We test the electrics in our rented homes and communal areas every five years, and fix anything that needs to be repaired.

Testing fire safety equipment

We test the fire alarms, smoke extraction systems, dry risers, and emergency lighting in your buildings twice a year.

Inspecting doors

We inspect communal fire doors every 3 months. We’ll also inspect the front doors of all rented homes in our buildings of 11 meters (about five storeys) tall or higher every year. We’ll be in touch when your building is due to be inspected.

Fitting smoke and heat detectors

We fit smoke, heat and carbon monoxide detectors in all of our rented homes.

Fire safety checks

We do various safety checks to make sure that your building is safe, including checks on the external wall (such as cladding), bin chutes and communal extractor fans.

What can I do to keep my home fire safe?

Test your smoke alarms

Test your smoke alarms every week by pressing the button and listening for the alarm sound – if the alarm doesn’t sound, please let us know
If you’re a leaseholder, please make sure that smoke alarms are fitted on every floor of your home

Keep your electrics safe

We test the electrics in our rented homes every five years – please let us in when we visit
If you’re a leaseholder, please arrange for your electrics to be tested by a qualified electrician every five years – we may ask to see your electrical test certificates
Don’t overload plug sockets
Register new electrical appliances and check that existing electrical appliances have not been recalled

Stay gas safe

We service gas boilers in our rented homes every year – please let us in when we visit
If you’re a leaseholder, please arrange for your gas boiler to be serviced by a Gas Safe registered engineer every year – we may ask to see your gas servicing records

Take care with open flames

Make sure cigarettes are put out and thrown away carefully, never smoke in bed, keep matches away from children and never leave lit candles unattended
Most fires start in the kitchen, so never leave your cooking unattended and take extra care with hot oil
Don’t have barbeques on balconies
Don’t smoke in communal areas or drop cigarette butts

Reduce the risk of fire spreading

Don’t store flammable liquids such as petrol at home
Don’t throw away flammable liquids in communal bin areas
Don’t leave or dump rubbish or furniture in communal areas

Prepare and protect your family

Make sure everyone knows what to do if there’s a fire in your home
Make sure everyone in your home knows where you keep the keys to your doors, gates or windows that can help you escape – the Fire Brigade advises leaving gates open when people are in your home
Please let us know if you think you or other members of your household would struggle in an evacuation
Don’t block escape routes such as your own hallway or communal corridors

You can find more advice on preventing fires from the London Fire Brigade.

How can I keep my balcony safe from fire?

If a fire breaks out on your balcony, it can spread much faster than a fire inside the building.

Always using an ashtray if you smoke on your balcony
Disposing of your cigarette butts as carefully as you would indoors
Keeping your balcony clear of combustible items because they are an ignition source – this includes white goods, gas cylinders or any other flammable substances
It’s ok to keep plants and a few items of fire retardant patio furniture on your balcony
Enjoy barbecue food and eating outside by cooking on an electric grill or griddle pan inside your home – barbecues on balconies are a serious fire risk and not allowed
Please ask us if you’d like to have a barbecue in outdoor communal spaces so we can help you to do this as safely as possible

Fire doors

Why are fire doors important?

Fire doors, including your front door and communal doors, are really important. They protect you and your family by helping to stop fire and smoke from spreading throughout your building.

What is a fire door?

For your front door to be a fire door, it must be self-closing and provide protection against fire to FD30S standard. ‘FD’ stands for Fire Door, ‘30’ means that the door can resist fire for 30 minutes, and ‘S’ means that the door is smoke sealed.

Other doors in your home, such as your kitchen door, may also be a fire door.

You can find detailed guidance about fire doors on the Government’s website.

How do I know if my front door and communal doors are safe?

We inspect communal fire doors every three months. We’ll also inspect the front doors of all rented homes in our buildings of 11 metres (around 5 storeys) tall or higher every year. We’ll be in touch when your building is due to be inspected. You must make sure to arrange an appointment with us and be available when our inspector visits.

We’ll send you a copy of the inspector’s report following their visit including details of anything you need to do to make sure your door is safe.

If you’re a leaseholder, you can provide us with a door inspection report completed by an accredited fire door inspector or (for a newly fitted door) a certificate for the door and its installation.

What can I do to make sure that the fire doors work if there’s a fire?

Fire doors will only work if they’re closed, so:

Keep them shut when they’re not being used
Never wedge or prop them open
Never remove or adjust the door closer mechanisms
Close all doors inside your home before you go to bed

Please let us know about any faults or damage to your fire doors or closers.

If you’re a leaseholder, you’re responsible for your front door and should arrange for a certified contractor to carry out any repairs and maintenance needed.

Smoke alarms

What do I do if I don’t have smoke alarms or they don’t work?

If you’re a tenant and you don’t have smoke alarms fitted or your alarm isn’t working, please let us know.

Smoke alarms make a chirping noise if the battery is running out or if there is a fault.

If you’re a leaseholder, you are responsible for maintaining and replacing your smoke alarms.

Do you provide smoke alarms for leaseholders?

If you’re a leaseholder, you are responsible for maintaining and replacing your smoke alarms.

Make sure smoke alarms are fitted on every level of your home
Battery smoke alarms with a ten year battery life can be purchased from DIY and hardware shops
The London Fire Brigade fit battery smoke alarms free of charge if you sign up for a home fire safety visit online

Should I test my smoke alarms?

Yes. Test your smoke alarms regularly – press ‘test’ on your detector, push it in and hold. If the smoke detector is working, the alarm will sound, along with any other smoke detectors in your home that are linked to it.

Security gates

Why do I need permission to fit a security gates or grille?

Security gates and grilles fitted on front doors or in shared areas, including walkways, can prevent the emergency services from reaching you quickly if there’s a fire.

Gates and grilles can cause threat to life if there’s a fire because they can trap people and block the fire brigade from entering and rescuing those inside.

This is why you must ask us before fitting a security gate or grille to your home. We have to remove gates and grilles which we haven’t given permission for, and will re-charge you for the removal cost

I have a security gate. What can I do to reduce the fire risk?

The London Fire Brigade recommends keeping your gates and grilles unlocked, at all times, when people are at home.

In case a gate or grille is locked by accident, keep a spare key in an agreed location inside your home and make sure everyone living in your home knows where it is.

Communal areas

Why can’t I store stuff in the communal areas in my building?

Shared areas such as stairwells, corridors and landings are part of your escape route if there’s a fire and must be kept clear.

Keep all of your belongings inside your home, including rubbish bags, unwanted furniture, buggies, bikes and shoes.

Find out how to dispose of or donate your unwanted furniture or mattresses, on Tower Hamlets Council’s website, so there’s no need to leave them in communal areas.

Can I store gas cylinders in the communal areas or inside my home?

Never store gas cylinders or any other flammable substances in communal areas or inside your home – they are an ignition source and can explode if exposed to heat or fire.

Are electric wheelchairs/mobility scooters allowed?

We don’t allow electric wheelchairs/mobility scooters to be charged or stored in communal areas as this poses a fire risk and could prevent safe escape in the event of fire.

Please let us know if you are thinking of buying an electric wheelchair/mobility scooter– this will help us to provide advice to help keep you safe. You can:

Can I smoke in the communal areas in my building?

Only smoke inside your home because smoking is illegal in communal areas.

Fire risk assessments and EWS1 forms

What is a fire risk assessment?

We’re responsible for arranging fire risk assessments (FRAs) to our buildings every year and acting upon work which may be identified.

An FRA is a report on the fire hazards and precautions within the internal communal areas of a building. It identifies risks, evaluates existing fire safety measures and tells us if extra measures are needed to prevent, control and reduce the effects of fire.

If you live in a block of flats and want to see the safety records for where you live, you can do so by scanning the QR code on your building with a smart phone.

What is an External Wall System Assessment 1 (EWS1) form?

Additional fire risk assessments, known as EWS1 assessments check that materials used to construct buildings, usually over 18 meters tall, have passed safety tests and been installed and maintained correctly, including cladding.

As your landlord we must complete these assessments to comply with the Fire Safety England Regulations 2022 and the Building Safety Act 2022.

We’ve carried out an extensive EWS1 programme across over 100 of our buildings to identify where remediation works have been necessary. EWS1 forms can be issued on request.

You can find the status of buildings in our current EWS1 assessment programme by using the search box on this webpage.

Do you issue EWS1 forms to leaseholders?

Many leaseholders wishing to buy, sell or re-mortgage their properties are required to provide EWS1 certification to solicitors and mortgage lenders. Certificates can be issued to leaseholders on request. Email buildingsafety@poplarharca.co.uk.