Scottish Fire and Rescue Service has issued some guidance and advice to help hotel and guest house owners make sure their fire safety arrangements are up to standard ahead of Glasgow 2014.

A spokesman for the SFRS said: “We are fast approaching  the Commonwealth Games where Scotland will see tens of thousands of tourists and sports enthusiasts arriving in the Glasgow area or its surrounds to enjoy the sporting spectacle. The Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS) has published advice to help hotel and guest house owners make sure that their fire safety arrangements are up to standard. These standards apply at all times, not just for a special event such as the Commonwealth Games.

“For a number of months leading up to the games, SFRS fire safety teams have been checking that hoteliers and Bed and Breakfast (B&B) owners are ready for this summer’s Commonwealth Games, and with Glasgow expecting thousands of visitors, fire safety auditors are reminding temporary accommodation owners and existing hoteliers of their responsibilities.”

The guidance specifically targets:

Guest accommodation in small premises, such as B&Bs, guest houses, farmhouses, inns and restaurants with rooms;

Self-catering accommodation, such as houses, cottages, chalets, flats and holiday caravans; or hostels or small bunkhouses.

Assistant Chief Officer Lewis Ramsay, Director of Prevention and Protection said: “This by no means the full list of property types covered under fire safety legislation and you should carefully consider the range of fire safety arrangements that you  may need to implement. Detailed information is available on our website: www.firescotland.gov.uk.”

The Fire (Scotland) Act 2005 and the associated Fire Safety (Scotland) Regulations 2006 imposes a duty to protect the people using your premises from the risk of fire, which includes:

• Carrying out a fire safety risk assessment of the premises
• Identifying  and implementing the fire safety measures necessary as a result of the fire safety risk assessment
• Keeping the fire safety risk assessment and outcome under review

Full details on fire safety law are available on the Fire Safety for Businesses pages of www.firescotland.gov.uk

In a bid to remove potential fire hazards, commercial buildings and non-domestic premises in Scotland are already forced to carry out a fire safety risk assessment under the Fire (Scotland) Act 2005, in conjunction with the Fire Safety (Scotland) Regulations 2006, if the assessment is thought to have been carried out to an insufficient extent, the enforcing authority has the power to prosecute the Dutyholder.

Original source: http://www.firescotland.gov.uk/news-campaigns/news/2014/07/advice-to-hotel-and-gues-house-owners.aspx