Does Fire Door Safety Week really matter...?

...Because a door’s a door’s a door, right?

No, a fire door is an engineered safety device.

Fire doors are a crucial part of the passive fire protection of every commercial, public and multiple occupancy building. They save lives and property.

There are about 3 million new fire doors bought and installed every year in the UK, the vast majority made from timber. Fire doors are often the first line of defence in a fire and their correct specification, maintenance and management can be the difference between life and death for building occupants.  

However, they remain a significant area of neglect, often the first thing to be downgraded on a specification and mismanaged throughout their service life; propped open, damaged and badly maintained.

Consequently, the British Woodworking Federation (BWF) have created Fire Door Safety Week.

Why Fire Door Safety Week?

• To raise awareness of the critical role of fire doors, drawing attention to specific issues such as poor installation and maintenance.
• To encourage building owners and users to check the operation and condition of their fire doors and to report those that aren’t satisfactory.
• To link together the initiatives of many organisations with common interests in the fire door and passive fire protection industries.
• To engage and educate people, helping the whole building industry and every property owner understand the correct specification, supply, installation, operation, inspection and maintenance of fire doors.

Brandon Lewis MP, Fire Minister commented “It is great to see a campaign that doesn’t just point the finger, but focuses on what we need to know so that we can all encourage best practice.

'To make a difference, we all need to take responsibility and report signs of wear and tear and where fire doors are not being used properly. I welcome the continued efforts of all of those involved in the campaign and am very pleased to lend my support.'

Would you like to get involved?

You can download the fire door safety toolkit containing useful information and resources to help promote fire door safety week. Click here to find out more. We're tweeting fire door safety tips this week - join us in the fire door safety thunderclap by using the hashtag #firedoorsafety.

Also read: 5 step fire door check