Our recent case study of St Joseph’s Catholic High School demonstrates the importance of fire compliance in education settings.
For any facility, especially those responsible for the care of young people, fire compliance should be a top priority.
Because it’s about protecting lives, ensuring safety, and creating an environment where education can thrive.
The Importance of Fire Compliance
Fire compliance involves a certain range of safety measures, from fire alarms and emergency lighting to fire doors and compartmentation.
We design each element to protect lives, minimise damage, and ensure safe, orderly evacuations during a fire.
For educational facilities like St Joseph’s Catholic High School, where the safety of hundreds of students and staff is paramount, fire compliance is about creating a safe learning environment by meeting legal standards.
St Joseph’s Catholic High School has been a cornerstone of the Workington community for over 90 years.
To continue fulfilling their role of providing quality education and support to students and their families, the school recognised the need to upgrade its fire safety systems.
Three Key Aspects of the Fire Compliance Upgrade
Fire Alarm System:
The existing fire alarm system was outdated and required a complete overhaul.
ASH Integrated Services installed a new, state-of-the-art fire alarm system designed to meet the stringent requirements of the BS5839 Part 1:2017 standard.
The system includes analogue addressable fire detection with advanced control panels. This setup ensures precise detection and rapid response in case of a fire.
Emergency Lighting:
Emergency lighting is critical in guiding occupants to safety during a power failure. The new lighting system at St Joseph’s was designed in accordance with BS5266, ensuring that all escape routes and exit points are clearly illuminated.
The system includes self-test emergency luminaires as part of the automated testing system, which enhances reliability and ease of maintenance.
Fire Doors and Compartmentation:
Fire doors and compartmentation are essential for preventing the spread of fire and smoke. They provide occupants with more time to evacuate safely.
This project is a perfect example of the impact thorough, well-executed fire compliance measures can have on a community.
The goal was to ensure that the school not only met but exceeded current fire safety standards.
Job done
ASH, now a multi-award-winning provider of integrated electrical, mechanical, and renewable energy solutions, was selected as the main contractor for this critical project. Arcadis Consulting UK (Ltd) conducted the tender exercise that led to this selection.
Mark Ruscoe – Senior Consultant, Arcadis Consulting (UK) Limited said the following:
‘We have worked alongside ASH Integrated Services on a number of various projects within the Education Environments where the programme of works/timelines are always very challenging, but they always deliver a good quality installation.’
‘The flexible approach and can do attitude of the ASH Team on site and the way they worked under pressure to get the project delivered on time was over and above expectations. We received so much positive feedback from the School Management and Maintenance Team about the ASH Team, where nothing was too much trouble.‘
