Visitors to a Prestwich office or business premises may not know the building as well as staff do. A fire-risk-assessment review should consider what those visitors need to recognise a warning, understand the instructions and leave safely. Reception arrangements and meeting bookings are useful places to put that planning into practice.
Start with a clear description of who visits and when. Tell your assessor about customers, contractors, regular visitors and meetings held outside normal reception hours. Include the parts of the building visitors use and who hosts them. Government fire-safety guidance identifies people unfamiliar with the premises as a group to consider when assessing risk.
Agree what information people receive on arrival. Keep the explanation short and consistent with the building's emergency plan: how a warning is given, what the visitor should do and where the relevant assembly point is. Do not rely on a visitor discovering the instructions during an alarm. Make sure hosts and reception staff know who provides the briefing.
Offer a discreet opportunity to discuss assistance needs before the visit. Avoid assumptions based on appearance or a disability label. Government guidance says evacuation planning must account for the people likely to be present, including disabled people. The appropriate arrangement should be agreed with the person and those responsible for the premises, supported by competent advice where needed.
Check the practical staffing arrangements. If a plan depends on a named host or trained colleague, discuss what happens when that person is absent or reception is closed. Any equipment, communication method or assistance described in the plan needs to be available and understood. Do not improvise lifting or carrying methods, or assume that calling the fire service replaces an evacuation plan.
Keep visitor procedures connected to the wider assessment. Tell the assessor about changes to meeting locations, opening hours or access arrangements, and follow up any identified actions. Share only the information staff need to carry out the agreed plan, handling personal details sensitively. Review the arrangements when the building or the way it is used changes.
Spicy Protect offers fire risk assessments across Prestwich, Greater Manchester and the North West. To discuss your premises and the information to prepare for an assessment, call 0161 339 7072 or email hello@spicyprotect.com.