Fire Risk Assessment Records and Action Plan for a Block of Flats

If a fire risk assessment finding in a block of flats is ever questioned by the local fire and rescue authority, an incoming manager, an insurer or after an incident, the issue is rarely whether the assessment existed. It is whether you can show what was done about each finding, against the right communal area, and when. That is the record-keeping problem this guide solves.

For a block of flats specifically: file the assessment against the correct building and shared areas, turn each finding into a tracked action tied to the exact corridor, door or feature it concerns, hold the right completion evidence, keep who is responsible for the common parts clear where a freeholder or agent is involved, and prepare a clean handover when management changes. If you are still working out whether an assessment is required, what areas it should cover or who the Responsible Person may be, our broader guide to fire risk assessments for landlords covers that first.

Scope: This guide focuses on organising fire risk assessment records for blocks of flats in England. Different legislation and guidance apply in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.

What to do when you receive a block-of-flats fire risk assessment

Start by checking that the document can be matched to the correct building and understood without relying on somebody’s memory. A PDF called fire report.pdf is not enough if nobody can tell whether it covers the whole block, one common stair or an earlier inspection.

Where the Fire Safety Order applies, current Home Office guidance says the Responsible Person must record the completed fire risk assessment in full, record the identity of anyone engaged to undertake or review it, and record the fire-safety arrangements for the premises.

The assessment’s scope should not be expanded or narrowed by whoever files it. For example, if the assessor did not inspect a locked meter cupboard or could not access a particular door, preserve that qualification rather than recording the area as complete.

The Home Office’s small-block guide addresses common parts, the building’s structure, external walls and doors between flats and common parts, but it has a defined scope. It is intended for qualifying blocks limited to three storeys and no more than six flats, with further conditions for converted buildings. Use guidance appropriate to the particular building rather than applying a small-block checklist to every block.

Turn each finding into a usable action record

The assessment records what the assessor found. The action record shows how each finding was taken forward. The two should stay linked, but they should not be merged in a way that changes the assessor’s original wording.

For each finding, record:

Use a stable action reference where several similar issues exist. “Second-floor corridor — flat 8 entrance door — action 04” is much easier to follow than “fire door job”, especially if the assessment identifies several doors.

What counts as evidence that an action was completed?

There is no single document that proves every type of fire-safety action has been completed. The appropriate evidence depends on the finding, the work and whether technical inspection or professional judgement is needed.

Different records show different stages of an action, and their value depends on the detail they contain:

A short factual note can preserve context where a document is unclear. For example: “Received from ABC Contractor on 12 July in response to action 04 concerning the flat 8 entrance door.” The note should not claim that the work was technically adequate unless the underlying evidence supports that conclusion.

If you own one flat rather than the whole block

A landlord who owns one leasehold flat may not control the common parts or hold the block’s master fire-safety file. The freeholder, management company, right-to-manage company, managing agent or another person may have responsibilities for the shared areas. The position depends on the ownership and management arrangements, so do not assume it from job titles alone.

The practical aim is to know who manages the relevant records and to retain information that affects your flat, your tenant or your own responsibilities. Depending on the circumstances, it may be useful to ask for:

• confirmation of who is responsible for the common parts and how to contact them;
• the date or status of the current assessment and the areas it covers;
• relevant fire-safety information provided to residents;
• information about findings or work that affects the flat, its entrance door or the route from it;
• updates on outstanding actions relevant to the property; and
• clarification of who is arranging work where responsibility is not clear.

Keep the request, the response and the version or date of any document supplied. If only a summary or extract is provided, label it accurately rather than filing it as the complete assessment. Access to particular records and responsibility for work can depend on the lease, control of the premises and the applicable legal duties. Seek appropriate advice where the position is disputed or unclear.

Records kept for the individual flat may include evidence of required alarm checks. Our smoke and carbon monoxide alarm compliance log guide explains what England landlords should test and record for a tenancy.

Keep the assessment history and review trail visible

A new review should not erase the earlier assessment. The earlier version provides the baseline; action records show what followed; and the later review explains the current position. Together, they create a sequence that another landlord, manager, assessor or Responsible Person can understand.

For each new assessment, review or addendum, record:

• the document date and version;
• who undertook or reviewed it;
• why the review took place;
• whether the scope or assumptions changed;
• which earlier actions remain open, changed or were closed;
• new findings and their action references; and
• the next recommended review point or reminder.

Article 9 of the Fire Safety Order requires the assessment to be reviewed regularly and where there is reason to suspect it is no longer valid or there has been a significant relevant change. There is no universal statutory annual expiry date for every block. Follow the assessment and current guidance, and bring the review forward when relevant circumstances change.

If an action changes after further professional input, keep the original entry and add the revised position, date, reason and supporting record. Avoid silently editing “replace door” into “inspect door”, for example, because that removes the history explaining why the action changed.

For wider retention planning, see our guide to how long landlords should keep records. It is safer to make a deliberate retention decision than to let an old assessment disappear when a shared drive is tidied or an agent’s portal closes.

Keep recurring fire-safety checks as separate records

The fire risk assessment action plan should not be used as a substitute for recurring checks required under separate fire-safety duties. Where the Fire Safety (England) Regulations 2022 apply, keep each check as its own dated record and link it to the relevant door, lift or item of equipment.

• Multi-occupied residential buildings with storeys over 11 metres: keep dated records of quarterly checks of all fire doors in the common parts and of the Responsible Person's best endeavours to carry out annual checks of flat entrance doors, including self-closing devices.
• High-rise residential buildings of at least 18 metres or seven storeys: keep dated records of the minimum monthly checks on lifts for firefighters and essential firefighting equipment, together with faults and any notification to the fire and rescue service where an item remains out of order for more than 24 hours.
• All multi-occupied residential buildings: keep copies of the fire-safety instructions and fire-door information provided to residents, together with the issue date or version.

These records support ongoing fire-safety management, but they do not replace the assessment, action plan or review history. See the government guidance on the Fire Safety (England) Regulations 2022 for the duties that apply to different building heights.

Prepare the file for a management or Responsible Person handover

A handover is the moment when weak record keeping becomes obvious. The assessment may be in a shared folder, while action updates sit in personal inboxes, contractor evidence is attached to messages and the next review date exists only in a calendar.

Home Office guidance says a departing Responsible Person must share relevant fire-safety information with an incoming Responsible Person. The guidance lists the fire risk assessment and review records, the identity of anyone who assisted with the assessment or review, relevant Responsible Person and Accountable Person details, and certain building information among the records that may need to pass across.

Even where the change is an administrative handover rather than a change of Responsible Person, the same organised structure is useful. The incoming manager should be able to identify:

Record what was transferred, when, to whom and by what method. Where management is moving between a landlord and agent, our letting agent handover checklist covers the wider property records that may also need attention.

Common block-of-flats record mistakes

Filing everything against one flat

A communal stairwell assessment belongs to the block or common-area record, even if one flat owner arranged it. Link records to an individual flat as well where relevant, but do not lose the building-wide context.

Recording vague locations

Descriptions such as “hall door” become ambiguous when the block has several halls and doors. Use the assessor’s reference and a precise location that another person can recognise.

Treating an appointment or invoice as automatic completion

An appointment shows intention, while an invoice shows a charge. Neither necessarily records the technical outcome or any further recommendation. Match the evidence to the nature of the action.

Overwriting the original finding

If the action changes, preserve what the assessment originally said and record the reason for the revision. Otherwise, the audit trail can make a material issue look as though it was never raised.

Assuming the managing agent has the complete file

Ask what is held, request relevant copies and record unanswered gaps. This is particularly important before an agent changes or access to an online portal ends. A landlord compliance spreadsheet can help track dates and document locations, but the underlying reports and evidence still need to be retained.

Letting supporting documents become detached

A photograph or contractor report is much less useful if nobody can identify its block, location or related action. Use consistent references and add short factual context when needed.

Fire risk assessment action and record FAQs

Keep each finding and its evidence connected

A useful block-of-flats record shows more than the existence of a fire risk assessment. It shows which document is current, what each finding relates to, what happened next, what evidence supports the status and what still needs attention.

If you are reviewing the wider property file at the same time, our free landlord compliance checklist provides a practical prompt list for common certificates and supporting evidence.