What it is
A fire strategy report fixes the basis of design for one specific building: how it is evacuated, what the escape routes have to carry, where the compartment lines sit, how the external walls behave, the active systems the escape plan depends on, and fire service access. The benchmark is Approved Document B, BS 9999 or BS 7974, as the building demands. Where the design steps outside that guidance, the report says where, and on what basis, in the same document. Because we have no installation or remediation arm, the strategy carries no financial interest in what the design goes on to specify.
When you need it
- A new development needs a strategy for building regulations approval
- An existing strategy no longer matches the building or its use
- A refurbishment or change of use alters escape routes, compartmentation or occupancy
- Building control, insurers or purchasers have asked for one
What you receive
- A fire strategy report with marked-up compartmentation and travel-distance drawings
- The basis of design set out, with every departure from guidance named
- Revisions through design development to keep the strategy current
How we do it
- Brief and design review: the drawings, the intended use and occupancy, and the approval route are pinned down before a word is written.
- Drafting: the strategy is written against the applicable benchmark — Approved Document B, BS 9999 or BS 7974 — with the risk profile and the evacuation strategy fixed for each use.
- Coordination: the draft is worked through with the design team and building control, so it answers the questions the approving authority will actually ask.
- Revision: marked-up drawings are reissued as the design develops, so the strategy matches what is built, not what was first drawn.
What drives the cost
Cost depends on building size and complexity, whether the strategy is for a new design (drawings exist) or an existing building (survey time needed; see retrospective fire strategies), the number of design revisions supported through development, and the approval route. We scope each commission individually and provide a fixed fee before starting.
Common questions
Is a fire strategy a legal requirement?
Building regulations approval requires demonstrating compliance with Part B, and a fire strategy report is how a design of any complexity evidences that. Regulation 38 then requires fire safety information — including the strategy — to be handed to the responsible person at completion. For higher-risk buildings, the Building Safety Act gateway regime makes the strategy's information requirements explicit.
What is the difference between a fire strategy and a fire risk assessment?
Different questions. A fire strategy sets out how a building is designed to resist and survive fire — escape, compartmentation, systems — and you need one for new work, major change, or where the original is lost. A fire risk assessment is the legal duty for a building in use: it checks the measures actually in place and lists what to act on. New or altered building: strategy. A standing building you operate: assessment. Often both, in that order.
Which standard will my strategy follow — Approved Document B, BS 9999 or BS 7974?
Approved Document B suits straightforward buildings that sit comfortably within its guidance. BS 9999 applies a risk-profile approach that can earn justified flexibility — longer travel distances, different provisions — where the building's characteristics support it. BS 7974 is the performance-based framework for buildings that need engineered analysis. The building chooses the benchmark, not the consultant's preference; we state the basis of design and any departures plainly in the report.
What does a design-stage fire strategy actually contain?
One coordinated document. It sets out the basis of design and the standard applied; the risk profile and the evacuation strategy for each use; means of escape — occupancy, travel distances, stair capacities; compartmentation and fire resistance periods; external fire spread, including boundary distances and wall build-ups; the active systems that support escape, from detection and alarm through smoke control to emergency lighting; and fire service access. Compartmentation and travel-distance drawings are marked up and issued with it, and both are revised as the design develops.
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