Staying safe in your sheltered home

Safety in communal areas

If there is a fire in your building, it is important that:

• You can easily leave the building, as quickly as possible.
• The emergency services can enter the property promptly in their rescue missions.
• There is nothing in the communal area that could easily combust.

To make your communal areas as safe as possible, please do not store, or leave any belongings in these areas or in communal gas or electric cupboards.

We may remove items left in the communal area if they’re causing an obstruction or hazard. This includes items such as bicycles or pushchairs.

If you have a mobility aid that is currently stored in the communal area, please contact our Tenancy and Estates team here. They can discuss with you more suitable storage solutions for these.

Fire Doors

Did you know, a fire door will:

• Stop a fire inside a flat from spreading to the communal parts and preventing you from escaping via the corridor or staircase.
• Stop a fire in the communal areas of a block of flats spreading into a flat, where you may be sheltering until the fire service arrives.
• Provide you with security.

All flat doors which open into a communal escape route must be fire-resistant and self-closing. Please note it is important that these fire doors are not left open. Failure to comply could invalidate any property, contents, or any other insurance policy you have in place.

Smoke and heat alarms in your sheltered home

DID YOU KNOW?

• 90 people die each year because the battery in their smoke alarm was flat or missing.
• Over half of home fires are caused by cooking accidents.
• More than five fires a day start by unattended candles.
• Every three days someone dies from a fire caused by a cigarette.
• A fire can start from the crumbs in your toaster.

Smoke alarms are the easiest way to keep you safe in case of a fire.

We will test smoke alarms within your home and communal areas regularly. The detectors that are in your home link to the central fire alarm system, we service these every three months and our contractor will check the detectors in your home annually.

How you can take extra care when you are cooking;

• When the cooker is on, don’t leave children alone in the kitchen and stay alert.
• Keep tea towels, cloths, and any other materials away from the cooker.
• Make sure when you finish in the kitchen, make sure all the appliances are off.

How you can avoid a fire in your home

1. Keep electricals away from water
2. Don’t put anything metal in the microwave
3. Don’t overload a plug socket
4. Unplug any appliances, this helps reduce the risk of fire
5. Keep candles away from soft furnishings
6. Don’t use faulty electrical devices, such as items with damaged casing or loose & exposed wiring
7. If there is a fire, know your escape route
8. Keep tea towels away from cookers and toasters