New fire safety rules about Residential Personal Emergency Evacuation Plans

Government guidance has long made clear that fire evacuation planning cannot exclude disabled people or rely on the Fire and Rescue Service to complete the evacuation.

From 6 April 2026, new obligations apply to ‘responsible persons’ at ‘relevant buildings’, regarding the safety of ‘relevant residents’ in the event of a fire, under the Fire Safety (Residential Evacuation Plans) (England) Regulations 2025.

Key definitions

Relevant buildings contain two or more sets of domestic premises and are either:

• At least 18 metres above ground level or have at least seven storeys
• More than 11 metres in height above ground level with simultaneous evacuation strategies in place.

If you’re unsure whether your building qualifies as a relevant building, consult Approved Document B – Fire, guidance under the Building Regulations.

Responsible persons (RPs) at such buildings include the owner, landlord, building manager or anyone with control.

Relevant residents are people living in a relevant building in domestic premises, which is their only or main residence, who would have difficulty evacuating a building without help in the event of a fire. This might include those with physical mobility issues, sight or hearing impairments or cognitive conditions affecting their understanding of what to do in a fire.

What responsible persons must do

The RP at a relevant building needs to:

• Use reasonable endeavours to identify residents living in the building with mobility or other impairments, including those in sub-let flats
• Create a person-centred fire risk assessment (PCFRA), with the resident’s consent, to support their evacuation. This should be based on a conversation with the resident about their particular needs and how their fire safety and existing evacuation procedures can be improved. For children or adults with cognitive impairments, conversations will need to be with their representatives. The PCFRA does not replace the building’s fire risk assessment
• Implement reasonable and proportionate measures to mitigate risks identified in the PCFRA
• With consent, create a written Residential Personal Emergency Evacuation Plan (PEEP) setting out what the resident has agreed to do in the event of a fire. Provide a copy to the resident. Residential PEEPs do not override existing leaseholder rights
• Review the PCFRA with the resident every 12 months or sooner if their circumstances change
• With consent, share the resident’s details with the local Fire and Rescue Service including:
  • Flat number
  • Floor number
  • Basic information on the degree of assistance that the resident may require to evacuate the building
  • Any emergency evacuation statement.

Ideally, this information should be shared digitally and in advance, but RPs should check their local Fire and Rescue Service’s preference.

Equality and data protection

RPs must comply with the Equality Act 2010. In their dealings with relevant persons, RPs must not discriminate (directly or indirectly) against disabled people. They must make reasonable adjustments to accommodate disabled people and must not victimise or harass them.

Some disability rights campaigners have criticised the new PEEPs as tick-box exercises with no or inadequate quality standards. Great care should be taken when collecting personal information; if discrimination occurs, compensation awards can be substantial.

As they will be handling highly sensitive data, RPs must also have regard to their duties under data protection legislation.

Care home operators and providers of supported housing, extra care or sheltered accommodation must ensure they carry out PCFRs and prepare PEEPs alongside proper fire risk assessments.

Enforcing authorities, such as Fire and Rescue Authorities, will have the power to enforce RPs’ compliance with their duties.

General fire safety

These new regulations focus on the safety of certain residents if a fire necessitates evacuation. They add to existing fire safety obligations which already require RPs to consider evacuation measures. RPs must still:

• Carry out a “suitable and sufficient” fire risk assessment, address any fire safety concerns identified and review it regularly
• Prepare an overall building emergency evacuation plan
• Share it with the local Fire and Rescue Authority
• Place a copy in any secure information box, if the building has one
• Review it every 12 months, or as and when necessary.

New British Standard on fire risk assessment

In August 2025, a new British Standard in fire risk assessment in housing – BS9792 – replaced PAS 79-2:2020. It includes templates and practical guidance, with a dedicated annex on PCFRA. The Standard is designed for use by professional fire safety consultants; RPs should check that any professional is familiar with the new Standard before appointing them.

For RPs, compliance now requires early preparation: identifying which buildings fall within scope, building resident engagement pathways, designing PCFRA and PEEP processes, training staff, integrating data protection controls and ensuring fire risk assessments are prepared in accordance with the new British Standard.