Fire Safety & Escape Instructions
In a fire: Get out. Stay out. Call 999.
These instructions apply to every home managed by Your Home Managed, whether you live in a house, a flat, a shared house or a block of flats. Please read them when you move in and share them with everyone you live with. You will also receive a copy at the start of your tenancy, which we ask every adult resident to sign.
Which instructions apply to your home
What you do when a fire alarm sounds depends on the type of building you live in.
Not sure? Check the fire action notice in your entrance hall. If there is no notice, or it is unclear, follow Plan A and leave, then ask us to confirm. If you can see or smell fire or smoke in your own home, always leave.
If you discover a fire
Shout “Fire!” to warn everyone in your home. If there is a red fire alarm call point nearby, press it.
Close the door of the room where the fire is. A closed door holds back fire and smoke.
Leave by the nearest safe route, closing doors behind you. Do not stop for belongings.
Only tackle a fire if it is very small, you know how, and your way out stays clear. Never put water on a pan of oil or an electrical fire.
Once outside, call 999. Give the full address, including flat or room number and postcode.
Wait somewhere safe, away from the building. Tell the Fire Service if anyone is still inside.
Never go back in until the Fire Service says it is safe.
When the fire alarm sounds
Plan A: leave immediately
Leave straight away by the quickest safe route. Use another route if fire or smoke blocks it.
Before opening a closed door, touch it with the back of your hand. If it is warm, do not open it.
If there is smoke, keep low, where the air is cleaner.
Close doors behind you, but do not lock them. Never use a lift.
Call 999 once outside, even if you think someone else has.
Wait away from the building, on the pavement or across the road, out of the way of fire engines.
Plan B: stay put (only where your building’s notice says so)
If the fire is in your flat, leave at once, close your front door and call 999 from outside.
If the fire is elsewhere in the building and your flat is not affected by heat or smoke, stay inside with your front door and windows closed, and call 999.
Leave straight away if heat or smoke reaches your flat, or if the Fire Service tells you to.
If you cannot get out
Go into a room with a window, ideally facing the street, and close the door.
Block the gap under the door with towels, bedding or clothes, wet if possible.
Call 999. Tell them your address, flat or room number, and which room you are in.
Open the window and stay by it so firefighters can see and hear you.
Only escape through a window if you are on the ground or first floor and in immediate danger. Lower yourself from the sill feet first, then drop. Do not jump.
Know your way out
Every building is different, so in your first week take five minutes to learn yours with everyone you live with.
Walk your main escape route from your bedroom to the street, and find a second way out if there is one.
Check your front or exit door opens from the inside without a key. Keep keys for any locked windows or doors next to them, where everyone can find them in the dark.
Find your smoke and heat alarms and, in shared buildings, any fire alarm call points and the fire action notice.
Agree a safe place outside to meet, away from the building.
Know where to turn off the gas and electricity, if it is safe to do so.
Fire doors
Fire doors hold back fire and smoke for at least 30 minutes, keeping hallways and stairs clear for escape. They are fitted in shared houses, HMOs and blocks of flats, and sometimes in houses with three or more storeys. A fire door only works when it is closed. If your home has them, you must:
Keep fire doors closed, including your flat or room entrance door. Never wedge or prop them open.
Never remove, disconnect or tamper with a door’s self-closer.
Not damage, paint over or remove the strips and seals around the edges.
Not fit extra locks, letter boxes, cat flaps or spy holes without our written consent.
Report any fire door that will not close fully on its own, is damaged or has gaps around it.
Keep escape routes clear and prevent fires
Keep hallways, landings and stairs completely clear: no bikes, buggies, bins, furniture or rubbish.
Never leave cooking unattended, and keep tea towels and paper away from the hob.
Charge e-bikes, e-scooters and their batteries only with the manufacturer’s charger. Never charge them in hallways or on escape routes, overnight or while you are out.
Do not overload sockets or plug extension leads into each other. Switch off tumble dryers and other appliances before going out or to bed.
No smoking, candles, shisha, portable gas or paraffin heaters inside the property or in communal areas. Do not store petrol, gas bottles or other flammable items.
Smoke and heat alarms
Test the alarms in your home by pressing the test button once a month.
Never remove batteries, cover or disconnect an alarm, even when cooking. Open a window instead.
Report any alarm that is beeping, faulty or missing straight away.
Reporting faults and getting help
Your copy of these instructions
We give every resident a copy of these instructions at the start of their tenancy and reissue them every 12 months, or sooner if the fire safety arrangements at your building change. If you need another copy, or would like it in another format, please contact us on 020 8125 7780 or at info@yourhomemanaged.com.