Agenda item

Purpose:  To consider and agree recommendations relating to the review into a policy for the installation of fire sprinklers in Council buildings.

(Councillor Bryant declared a personal interest in Agenda item 5 by virtue of the fact that he was the Chairman of the Royal Berkshire Fire Authority, appointed to represent the Council on this outside body. As his interest was personal and not prejudicial he was permitted to take part in the debate).

(Councillor Chandler joined the meeting at 6:45pm)

The Chairman expressed thanks for two visits made by the Committee to the Kennet Centre and Sainsbury’s to view their automatic fire suppression systems (fire sprinkler systems).   The members of the Committee agreed that they would still like to visit a school where an automatic fire suppression system had been installed, and requested that this be taken forward.

The Chairman summarised previous discussions of the Committee in a series of recommendations for the Committee to approve.  Following discussion, the Committee agreed the following:

§         The Committee recognised that building regulations were robust and suitable for the evacuation of buildings and protection of occupants;

§         The Committee recognised the protection offered to both the fabric of buildings and their occupants by automatic fire suppression systems;

§         The Committee accepted that the cost of retrospectively fitting automatic fire suppression systems would be prohibitive except in some cases of substantial refurbishment;

§         The Committee concluded that the installation of automatic fire suppression systems in any newly built Council owned or contracted properties should be presumed, and requested that a policy be drafted for approval;

§         The Committee was informed of the significant savings in insurance premiums achieved by other local authorities as a result of installing automatic fire suppression systems, and recommended that further discussion be held with the Council’s property insurers in order to achieve similar savings.

§         The Committee considered that the benefits of installing automatic fire suppression systems included a greater flexibility in building design and a reduction in water damage caused when the fire was being extinguished.

§         The Committee was grateful to David Sharp of the Royal Berkshire Fire and Rescue Service for the information supplied to the meeting of the 5^th July 2010.

§         The Committee considered that whilst installation and maintenance costs were a prime concern, they had to be considered in relation to savings in other areas including savings achieved through alternative building design.

§         The Committee recommended that consideration be given early in the design stages of a project as to where the components of an automatic fire suppression system would be located in order to reduce installation costs.

Councillor Bryant suggested to the Committee that any assessment of the need for automatic fire suppression systems in a building should reflect the specific issues relating to the use of the building.  For example, a school would have strong procedures for, and the ability to, evacuate the building; whereas residents of a residential home would be less able to evacuate the area.

The Committee considered a further suggestion that the Council insist on the installation of an automatic fire suppression system in all suitable planning applications submitted to the Council.  The Committee considered that without national backing, this could not be implemented and so would not be recommended.

RESOLVED that:

• A visit to a school where an automatic fire suppression system has been installed be arranged.
• The Committee would make the following recommendations to the Overview and Scrutiny Management Commission for endorsement:

1.      That the installation of automatic fire suppression systems in any newly built Council owned or contracted properties should be presumed, and request that a policy to this effect be drafted for approval.  The policy should reflect the views of the Committee as noted above.

2.      That further discussion be held with the Council’s property insurers with the aim of achieving further savings in premiums.