The Scottish Government

Crown premises

HM Chief Inspector of Fire and Rescue Authorities has responsiblility for enforcing fire safety legislation in most Crown premises in Scotland. Two enforcement officers are appointed to carry out this work on behalf of HM Chief Inspector.

Crown bodies include the main central Government Departments, their Executive Agencies, Non-Ministerial Departments and a number of public bodies. Most public bodies (more formally known as Non-Departmental Public Bodies or NDPBs) do not have Crown status. The Office of Public Sector Information (OPSI) maintains a list of UK Crown Bodies for the purposes of Crown copyright.

Background

Part 3 of the Fire (Scotland) Act 2005 as amended (the 2005 Act) came into force on 01 October 2006. This replaced a wide range of existing fire safety legislation and instead places broad general duties on employers and others responsible for premises. These are supplemented by more detailed requirements on fire safety measures contained in the Fire Safety (Scotland) Regulations 2006 [SSI 2006/456]

General guidance on the new legislation is now available and additional sector specific guidance is being prepared by the Scottish Executive. For the latest information see www.infoscotland.com/firelaw. Section 77 of the 2005 Act deals with the application of Part 3 of the 2005 Act to UK Crown bodies in Scotland.

Enforcement Policy

Where the Crown is subject to any of the general fire safety duties contained in Chapter 1 of Part 3 of the 2005 Act, enforcement of the legislation is undertaken by enforcement officers appointed by HM Chief Inspector of Fire and Rescue Authorities rather than those appointed by the local fire and rescue authority (Section 61).

Crown enforcement officers do not have responsibility for:

• premises occupied solely for the purposes of the armed forces of the Crown (and other premises wholly situated within such premises), or premises occupied solely by visiting forces - these are the responsiblity of the Defence Fire and Rescue Service;

and

• Crown premises with special process hazards eg nuclear installations and some construction sites - these are the responsibility of the Health and Safety Executive.

Our 2002 enforcement policy has now been revised to reflect the new legislation.

Enforcement Policy: Fire Safety in Crown Premises (November 2006)

Fire Certificates

The 2005 Act replaces the Fire Precautions Act 1971 and dispenses with the current system of fire certification. Existing Crown fire certificates, notices of exemption and application for fire certificates are no longer valid.

Contacts

The Inspectorate can be contacted at:

HM Inspectorate of Fire Services

Room 1R

St Andrews House

Regent Road

Edinburgh

EH1 3DG

Tel: 0131 244 2452

Fax: 0131 244 2564

Website: www.scotland.gov.uk/fire

Enforcement Officers

East of Scotland (see table below): GRAHAM GOODALL

Tel: 0131 244 2339 e-mail address: graham.goodall@scotland.gsi.gov.uk

West of Scotland (see table below): JOHN MILLIGAN

Tel: 0131 244 2336 e-mail address: john.milligan@scotland.gsi.gov.uk