Cameron House Fatal Accident Inquiry recommendations: Short Life Working Group final report

4.0 Short-Life Working Group Response

4.1 Overview

The SLWG has provided an opportunity for relevant parties to meet together to consider the FAI report and its recommendations and also full, frank discussions including the identification and examination of the short and longer term approaches to manage the risks set out in the FAI Report. The Terms of Reference and Remit^[6] for the short life working group were published in May 2023 and are reproduced under Annex A.

The group met five times and covered relevant issues, as follows:

• 22 February 2023: the terms of reference and remit of the group;
• 28 March 2023: industry response to recommendations 1 to 3;
• 27 April 2023: SFRS’s response to recommendation 6;
• 23 May 2023: Scottish Government’s response to recommendations 4 and 5;
• 27 June 2023: the draft SLWG report and next steps.

Minutes of these meetings are available on the Building and Fire Safety Ministerial Working Group page^[7].

The Group has been set up under the oversight of the Building and Fire Safety Ministerial Working Group and has been chaired by senior civil servants with Scottish Government officials administering the Group. Members have provided relevant papers for discussion and have been able to correct and / or comment meeting notes.

It should be noted that the FAI report clearly indicated the responsible organisations or sectors for each recommendation. The SLWG does not absolve any organisation or sector of responsibility for the recommendations. The terms of reference recognise that industry organisations have no power to mandate actions from others but will seek the best outcomes by addressing the delivery of each recommendation within their remit.

4.2 Hotel and Bed and Breakfast Industry Response

Section 4.2 of the report has been compiled by the STA and UKHS.

The STA and UKHS as umbrella organisations have explored signposting the relevant fire safety procedures to be put in place by businesses. It should be noted that many businesses already do this however, it is important for all dutyholders to be aware of and carry out their responsibilities.

Regular communications with their member network signposting advice and support available for businesses continue to be shared along with updates and recommendations passed on for onward sharing from professional bodies. This has included relevant documents to help dutyholders understand their statutory responsibilities under the Fire (Scotland) Act 2005^[8].

The legislation requires the provision of fire safety measures; including risk reduction measures, means of fire warning, firefighting, escape, up to date Fire Risk Assessment, staff training and instruction, as well as emergency procedures. It sets out fire safety responsibilities and seeks to ensure the safety of persons from harm caused by fire. The Act and the Scottish Government’s Practical Fire Safety for Existing Premises with Sleeping Accommodation^[9] provides a summary of the general requirements and is not intended to be comprehensive. Any dutyholders in doubt about their legal obligations should seek further advice^[10].

Specific actions in response to Recommendations one, two and three of the FAI are set out below.

Recommendation one: The recommendation as set out earlier in this report outlines that owners or operators of hotels (or similar sleeping accommodation) should, have in place up to date and robust procedures, to ensure that ash from open fires in hotels is removed and disposed of in a safe manner.

The items set out below outline a supportive (not prescriptive) list of actions that businesses and dutyholders should consider when developing and carrying out relevant procedures to ensure ash is disposed of safely. The STA has also provided an Open Fire and Solid Fuel Burner Risk Assessment template on their website^[11] to support dutyholders when creating and reviewing their open fire procedures.

The issues can be broken down into four themes.

Preparation and risk assessment:

• Specific risk assessment carried out in relation to open fires, disposal of ash and storage of combustibles for fires (wood, kindling, briquettes etc).
• Documented instruction and training of all relevant employees on the clearing and disposal of ash from open fires including but not limited to monitoring ash temperature to inform safe removal.
• Written Standard Operating Procedure (based on Jensen Hughes Report to West Dunbartonshire Council) for open fires and in particular the clearing and disposing of ash from open fires to outside of all buildings.

Extinguishing the fire:

• Fire to be completely extinguished before removing embers.
• Access to safe fireside tools for use by employees trained in clearing and disposal of ash from open fires. Tools to include metal ash can with lid, metal ash shovel, brush, gauntlets, (and as an optional addition) dust mask.
• Ashes even if they appear to be cold must be removed using metal tools.
• Embers must be wetted until completely cold before disposal.

Moving and storing ashes:

• No ash ever to be put anywhere near electrical units.
• No ash ever to be put anywhere near combustibles e.g., kindling and newspapers, particularly in an enclosed space.
• No ash ever to be transferred from an open fire to a cupboard or enclosed space.
• Ash always to be taken out of the building in a designated metal receptacle to an outside designated metal container with a lid, marked for ash disposal only and located away from the building and other combustible materials.

Supervision:

• Supervision of night porters or equivalent to ensure written procedure for open fires and disposal of ash complied with.

Recommendation two: The recommendation as set out earlier in this report outlines that owners or operators of hotels (or similar sleeping accommodation) should ensure that clear and robust evacuation arrangements are in place in the event of a fire to address foreseeable contingencies such as difficulties in accessing guest lists, or inclement weather.

The list below outlines a supportive (not prescriptive) list of actions that businesses and dutyholders should consider when developing and carrying out evacuation arrangements. Under recommendation three, the STA has also provided an Evacuation Drill Assessment template^[12] which also includes the information below on their websites to support dutyholders when creating and reviewing their evacuation procedures.

Under fire safety legislation in Scotland, it is the responsibility of those persons who have control of safety obligations in respect of non-domestic premises, to ensure that arrangements are in place for an evacuation of the premises, if the situation requires it. Each building should have an emergency fire action plan specifying the evacuation procedures for everyone, including people with a disability, likely to be in the building.

The issues can be broken down into two themes.

Methods of data storage and availability:

• Subject to risk assessment of the number of rooms and a zoned layout, recommend digital and printed guest lists to be held both on and off the premises. Digital and printed guest lists to be available to duty holder on site at all times.
• Digital or alternative system (dependent on size of business) to provide knowledge of whether guests are on or off premises, particularly at night.

Management and staff responsibility:

• Subdivide employee personnel into different parts of the property (labelled zones) for large hotels e.g., set maximum number of guests per staff member for that staff member to have some knowledge of the guests’ whereabouts.
• Evacuation points per allocated zone with corresponding allocated employee responsible for that zone and its guests. Employees allocated to each zone report to duty holder.
• A designated member of staff for each zone, where there are day and night shifts, on every shift to have responsibility for knowledge of the guest lists and knowledge of the room numbers/designations and whereabouts of guests in relevant zones. All report to duty holder.
• Verbal handover of guest names and room allocation between shifts to accompany digital data.
• Employees allocated to zones (each with evacuation point) report to duty holder with overall responsibility for the premises. Duty holder must hold sufficient information of guest’s room allocation and whereabouts to pass to SFRS Incident Commander in the event of a fire. Procedures must be in place to ensure an accurate roll call.

The responsibility for ensuring that guests are properly accounted for rests with the organisation rather than the individual members of staff. Whilst efforts should always be made to fully account for guests, the nature of hotels and other accommodation means that guests may be in different parts of the premises other than bedrooms or may be out of the hotel for a period of time during their stay.

Recommendation three: outlines that owners or operators of hotels (or similar sleeping accommodation) should ensure that robust arrangements are in place to ensure that all staff (in particular night staff) have experience of evacuation drills.

The list below outlines a supportive (not prescriptive) list of actions that businesses and dutyholders should consider when developing and carrying out relevant procedures when developing and carrying out evacuation training of all staff.

The issues can be broken down into two themes.

Preparation and written procedures:

• Written evacuation policy showing zones, evacuation points and reporting procedure, contacting SFRS.
• Written training for all employees in roll call and evacuation procedures to include written evacuation policy.

Training drills:

• To be carried out rehearsing employee allocation to specific zones, with knowledge of guests in those zones. Reporting to dutyholder.
• Should envisage and proceduralise accessing guest list immediately (see above) as a matter of priority for accurate roll call.
• Should set out communication procedures between employees allocated to zones and reporting back to duty holder.
• Should envisage process whereby employees allocated to zones account for guests at individual evacuation points.
• Should envisage speed for individual employees reporting to duty holder with roll call for individual zones contributing to overall roll call.
• Should feed into risk assessment - Planning, Implementation, Evaluation and produce Risk Assessment using template tailored to individual property and its layout and zones.

Dutyholders’ responsibilities for fire safety in relevant premises are contained within the Fire (Scotland) Act 2005, Part 3, Sections 53 and 54, namely the ‘Duties of employers to employees’ and ‘Duties in relation to relevant premises’, as defined in section 78.

Section 53 states that ‘each employer shall ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, the safety of the employer's employees in respect of harm caused by fire in the workplace’. This places the responsibility of each employer ‘to carry out an assessment of the workplace to identify any risks to the safety of the employer’s employees in respect of harm caused by fire in the workplace’. This also includes the requirement to review an assessment and take such fire safety measures to allow compliance.

In section 54 it states ‘Where a person has control to any extent of relevant premises the person shall, to that extent, comply’ in carrying out an assessment to identify risks. This section encompasses those who effectively manage premises on a daily basis. It also makes clear that owners of relevant premises are dutyholders too.

UKHS, STA, Scottish B&B Association and other trade bodies will continue to, and have already been, in touch with the businesses they work with, asking them to review their current procedures and make any necessary changes. Particular focus is of course looking at the FAI recommendations however it is also being used as an opportunity to urge businesses to review their wider fire safety processes.

Although these recommendations are looking at specific issues relating to the Cameron House fire, it is important they are used as part of full, fire risk assessed plans held by all businesses across Scotland.

UKHS and STA will continue to share information and best practice with their members, including highlighting the legal requirement to ensure that all businesses within their membership organisation assess their fire safety procedures. They will continue to assess how many businesses are accessing the resources available for businesses on industry websites and will continually identify ways to support their members on this important topic.

4.3 Scottish Government Response

Altogether, there were six recommendations, with recommendations one, two and three directed at Industry and recommendation six directed at the Scottish Fire and rescue Service. The Scottish Government has accepted recommendations four and five from the Fatal Accident Inquiry.

Recommendation four: The recommendation as set out earlier in this report is that the Scottish Government should consider introducing for future conversions of historic buildings to be used as hotel accommodation, a requirement to have an automatic fire suppression system installed.

Automatic fire suppression systems help to control the intensity and size of a fire, suppress it and in some cases may even extinguish it. Such systems can provide occupants, including vulnerable occupants, with the additional time necessary to escape following the outbreak of fire. The primary role of the suppression system may be for life safety or property protection.

Automatic fire suppression systems react to heat therefore, the greatest protection is afforded to those occupants out with the room of fire origin. Automatic suppression may provide some benefit to occupants in the room of fire origin where for example the fire growth is fast, and the temperatures allow the sprinkler system to open early in the development phase of the fire. The spray pattern delivered from the heads should control fire spread, reduce temperatures and dilute the smoke. In some cases, the fire might be extinguished if the fire is not shielded from the sprinkler spray. A smaller fire means that the Fire and Rescue Service will be able to bring the fire under control and extinguish it much more quickly. There are alternative forms of automatic suppression available on the market. Each system should be assessed on their own merits and certified and tested to suit its intended use.

‘Mandatory Building Standard 2.15 Automatic fire suppression systems^[13]’ is a prescriptive standard which states that “Every building must be designed and constructed in such a way that, in the event of an outbreak of fire within the building, fire growth will be inhibited by the operation of an automatic fire suppression system.” At present the requirement for suppression is limited to certain types of buildings (as per the list below) however does not include hotels or other types of holiday accommodation.

Types of buildings that require automatic fire suppression systems to be fitted when being built new or through conversions:

• Enclosed shopping centre;
• Residential care building;
• Sheltered housing complex;
• Flat or maisonette;
• Social housing dwelling;
• Shared multi-occupancy residential building;
• A school building (other than a building forming part of an existing school or an extension to a school building where it is not reasonably practicable to install an automatic fire suppression system in that building or extension).

Hotels are not defined in building regulations but fall within the definition of ‘residential building’ which means “a building, other than a domestic building, having sleeping accommodation.” The process of actioning a technical review of fire safety guidance, updating building regulations and associated guidance in the technical handbooks, including a full public consultation exercise and regulatory impact assessments typically involves a period of around two or more years. As a result, the Scottish Government will put into place a short-term measure to help building warrant applicants manage risk where a conversion from a historic building to a hotel is proposed. This will include amending the guidance in the technical handbooks (which explain how to achieve building work requirements set out in the Building Standards (Regulations) 2004) to promote the use of automatic fire suppression systems for such conversions to mitigate risks. This will be actioned during 2023.

In addition, the Scottish Government will amend the Section 34 letter to Local Authority Chief Executives under the Building (Scotland) Act 2003 (Section 34 - Reports and Information - Notification of Application for Building Warrant - Section 2 – Fire)^[14]. This would extend the type of applications for building warrants that a verifier must notify the Scottish Government’s Building Standards Division (BSD) of, to cover future conversions of historic buildings to be used as hotel accommodation. This action will allow the Scottish Government to monitor applications and provide advice to local authority building standards verifiers. This will be actioned by 31 October 2023.

In the longer term, the Scottish Government will constitute an expert working group to review the mandating of automatic fire suppression systems where historic buildings are being converted into hotels. The group’s membership will be agreed by 31 October 2023 and the Terms of Reference and remit will be in place by 31 December 2023.

The expert group will also fully consider the existing guidance on the special risks which existing hotels and similar premises may pose what advice is available on the benefits of automatic fire suppression systems. This will be part of the scope of the expert working group as above with the remit for the group in place by 31 December 2023.

The guidance documents to be reviewed (listed earlier in this report) include:

• Guide for Practitioners 6: Conversion of Traditional Buildings.
• A Short Guide to Fire Safety in Traditional Buildings.
• Practical Fire Safety Guidance for existing premises with sleeping accommodation.
• The guidance contained in the domestic and non-domestic Technical Handbooks.

Recommendation five: With the creation of an expert panel, as recommended by the FAI report, the panel will consider the management of historic construction techniques, materials, and hidden voids/cavities. This will include identifying risks and mitigation as part of the risk assessment process for relevant premises in use as well as at the point of conversion, alteration or extension of the building through the building warrant process.

Voids and cavities form hidden paths for fire, smoke and the products of combustion to spread unnoticed to parts of the building quite remote from the place of origin. As the fire is hidden it also makes it almost impossible to tackle without disruption to the building fabric.

It is important to identify and address these hidden cavities as part of a comprehensive fire safety plan to mitigate the risk of fire. Conversions and change of use of historic buildings is the main opportunity to carry out work to address the associated risks. However, the expert panel will examine the issue for buildings in use as well as during conversion.

As a short term measure the Scottish Government will amend the guidance contained in the technical handbooks to raise awareness of the risk of fire spread in hidden voids. We will also work with partners including industry, the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service, Local Authority Building Standards Scotland/The Building Standards Hub and Historic Environment Scotland to promote key fire safety messages as part of an awareness raising campaign. This will be an ongoing action with the first workshop set up by the end of 2023.

In the longer term, the expert group will also fully consider the existing guidance (as listed above) on the special risks which existing hotels and similar premises may pose through the presence of hidden cavities or voids, varying standards of workmanship, age, and the variance from current standards.

4.4 Scottish Fire and Rescue Service Response

Section 4.4 of the report has been compiled by the SFRS.

Recommendation six: The recommendation as set out earlier in this report outlines that SFRS should reduce the time-period between a fire safety audit inspection and the issue of a written outcome report.

The SFRS has put in place procedural changes to address the recommendation in its’ entirety. The SFRS Fire Safety Enforcement (FSE) Fire Safety Audit Procedure and Guidance has been amended to detail key actions that all Protection Officers (POs) must apply as part of the FSE Fire Safety Audit process.

One of the main changes introduced is that any deficiencies must be discussed, recorded and passed to the dutyholder on conclusion of an audit. This ensures that the FSE Audit outcomes are immediately and clearly communicated to the Dutyholder in a written format, utilising a newly introduced “Dutyholder Handover Sheet (DHS)”. This action was implemented nationally on 6 March 2023.

The timescales for the SFRS POs to process and produce formal letters, following conclusion of a Fire Safety Audit, are now detailed within the document. Dutyholders, in addition to the DHS, must receive formal written communication from SFRS detailing audit outcomes within a 14-day period following conclusion of the Fire Safety Audit. This action was implemented nationally on 1 April 2023.

The SFRS have also issued a ‘Form of Response’ to the Court detailing the actions taken in response to the recommendation six of the determination, and the timescales for their implementation which was formally communicated on 3 March 2023.

The SFRS will continue to monitor, and performance manage this approach to ensure compliance with the FSE Audit Procedure and Guidance document.

4.5 Historic Environment Scotland response

Section 4.5 of the report has been compiled by Historic Environment Scotland (HES). Although HES did not have any recommendation directed towards them within the FAI report, they have an important role in providing guidance for historic properties. As members of the SLWG, HES have proposed a number of actions in the short and long term.

In the short term, HES will update their ‘Managing Change’ guidance note on Fire and Historic Buildings in Autumn 2023. A key message of the guidance is that fire safety measures support the long-term survival of historic buildings and therefore protects their cultural significance for future generations. HES is also currently in the latter stages of drafting ‘A Short Guide to Fire Safety in Traditional Buildings’ and hope to consult with stakeholders in Autumn 2023.

In the longer term, HES also produces case studies associated with the Managing Change guidance and will produce case studies for this guidance to issues that have arisen in recent cases.

HES also has two published key technical guides relating to fire safety and protection:

• Guide for Practitioners 6: Conversion of Traditional Buildings (2007)^[15];
• Guide for Practitioners 7: Fire Safety Management in Traditional Building^[16]

Guide for Practitioners 6 is intended to assist those involved in the building warrant process reach agreement when a historic building is being converted. The guidance has the same legal status as the Technical Handbooks and is currently under review which is expected to take around two years.

The ‘Short Guide to Fire Safety in Traditional Buildings’ is intended to replace the Guide for Practitioners 7 in a more accessible format. HES will consult with key stakeholders in the Autumn 2023 on an updated version of the guidance.

The ‘Inform Guide – Fire Safety in the Home (2014)^[17]’ provides advice to owners and occupiers of traditional domestic buildings (pre-1919) on how to protect themselves and their property from fire. It explains relevant legislative requirements, vulnerability of traditional buildings, fire development, fire prevention and protection, fire and rescue service requirements and damage limitation planning. The guidance includes advice on the dangers of fire spread in hidden voids, the provision of compartmentation, automatic fire suppression and fire stopping.