The two documents are often confused, and buildings sometimes hold one while the law expects the other. This explainer sets out what each one does, where the duty comes from and how they work together.
Request a quoteA fire strategy says how the building was designed to keep people safe from fire. A fire risk assessment checks whether the building and the way it is run are actually doing that, and lists what needs fixing. Every occupied non-domestic building and every block of flats needs a fire risk assessment. A fire strategy is needed when a building is designed, altered, changes use or registers as a higher-risk building, and it is the reference the assessment should be checked against.
| Fire risk assessment | Fire strategy | |
|---|---|---|
| Purpose | Audit of the fire risk to occupants and the measures in place, with an action plan. | Design statement of how the building achieves fire safety: escape, compartmentation, external walls and fire service access. |
| Legal basis | Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005, as amended by the Fire Safety Act 2021 and the Building Safety Act 2022, plus the Fire Safety (England) Regulations 2022 for blocks of flats. | Building Regulations 2010 and Approved Document B for new work, Regulation 38 for handover, and the Building Safety Act 2022 safety case for higher-risk buildings. |
| Who is responsible | The Responsible Person: landlord, managing agent, employer or building owner. | The client or building owner for new work; the Principal Accountable Person for higher-risk buildings. |
| Who prepares it | A competent fire risk assessor. Ours hold the NSA Level 6 Diploma and are IFSM registered. | A fire safety professional or fire engineer, with drawings and the building's records. |
| When | Before occupation, then reviewed at least yearly and after any significant change. | At design stage, on material alteration or change of use, on registration as a higher-risk building, or retrospectively where none exists. |
| Standard | BS 9792:2025 for housing, PAS 79-1:2020 for non-domestic premises. | BS 9991 for residential buildings, BS 9999 for non-residential, following Approved Document B. |
| Output | Written report, significant findings and a prioritised action plan. | Written strategy with marked-up plans and a statement of the evacuation strategy and management assumptions. |
The strategy sets the assumptions. It says whether residents should stay put or evacuate together, where the compartment walls are, how long the fire doors should hold and where the fire service will connect their hoses. The assessment tests those assumptions against the building as it is today. A fire door that no longer closes, a compartment wall breached by new cabling, or a stay put strategy in a building whose external wall has since failed an appraisal are all findings that only make sense with the strategy in hand.
When the two documents disagree, the building has a problem that neither document alone will solve. That is why we prefer to prepare both, or at least to have the current strategy in front of us when we assess.
Read about our fire risk assessments and fire strategies, or send us the building details and we will tell you which document you need and quote for it.
No. A fire strategy does not assess the risk in an occupied building, and a fire risk assessment does not record the design intent. Occupied buildings need the assessment; buildings being designed, altered or registered as higher-risk need the strategy as well.
Not legally, but without the strategy the assessor has to infer the evacuation strategy and compartmentation from what they can see. Where the design intent is unclear, a retrospective fire strategy makes the assessment more reliable.
The fire and rescue service enforces the fire risk assessment under the Fire Safety Order. Building control checks the fire strategy against Part B for new work, and the Building Safety Regulator reviews both for higher-risk buildings.
Yes. SeeForth prepares fire risk assessments and fire strategies, and doing both means one survey, one set of assumptions and two documents that agree with each other.
The assessment at least once a year and after any significant change. The strategy whenever the building, its use or its evacuation approach changes, and on registration as a higher-risk building.
Tell us the building and we will tell you what it needs. Call 020 4634 3089 or send the details.
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