How Often Does a School Need a Fire Risk Assessment?

Fire risk assessments are a legal requirement under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 for every non-domestic premises in England and Wales — and schools are no exception. There's no single fixed interval written into law, which is exactly why so many sites get this wrong.

The general rule

In practice, most schools and academies should review their fire risk assessment annually, and treat it as a living document rather than a one-off exercise. An assessment from three years ago that no one has looked at since is not a defensible position if the HSE or fire service ever ask to see it.

What triggers an earlier review

• Any building work, refurbishment or change of layout
• A change of use to any part of the site (new lettings, community use out of hours)
• A fire, near-miss, or failed evacuation drill
• New furniture, storage, or a change in the number of occupants
• Any enforcement notice or informal advice from the fire service

The most common finding on sites we audit isn't a missing assessment — it's an outdated one that no longer reflects the building as it is today.

Who can carry one out

The "responsible person" — usually the headteacher, business manager, or trust estates lead — is legally accountable, even if a specialist is used to actually carry out the assessment. Using a competent third party doesn't transfer the legal responsibility; it just makes it far more likely the assessment is actually right.

What good practice looks like

Beyond the annual review, we recommend a rolling quarterly walk-round to catch the small things — a fire door wedged open, a blocked escape route, an extinguisher past its service date — before they become the finding in a formal audit.