We run the annual compliance cycle on small London blocks (under 18m) for individual freeholders, RTM directors and RMC boards: BS 9792 fire risk assessment, FDIS-compliant fire-door inspection, fire-alarm and emergency-lighting service, common-parts EICR, legionella scheme on communal tanks, Section 20 consultation packs, and the year-end evidence pack that closes your D&O renewal, lender query or pre-sale completion.
If you sit on an RTM, RMC or co-freehold board, or hold the title personally, you are the Responsible Person under the Fire Safety Order 2005, regardless of block size. We hold the calendar, run every inspection, assemble the evidence pack your insurer will ask for, and keep the director-liability position clean. For buildings above 18m or 7 storeys, see block management instead. Longer read: the director’s duty guide.
Volunteer boards do not have a compliance officer. They have a chair with a day job, a treasurer working full time and a secretary keeping the meeting minutes. The HSE partnership is written for that reality. The calendar is held. The evidence is assembled. The director-liability position stays defensible. No one on the board has to learn fire safety to do their job.
NEBOSH-certified fire risk assessors (IFSM-registered), FDIS-compliant fire-door inspectors, NICEIC electricians and UKAS-accredited asbestos surveyors all sit under one HSE project manager. The board sees one calendar, one quote and one report. Volunteer hours on compliance drop from around forty a year to four.
From £1,500 a year, scoped on one phone call, written into the service-charge demand line by line and quoted up front for the AGM. Section 20 consultation packs and one-off items (asbestos survey, Type 4 FRA, large remedial scopes) are priced separately at our published service-page rates so leaseholders can read every cost back to its standard.
Every inspection, test log, risk assessment and register is cross-referred to the statutory duty it discharges and bound into a single year-end evidence pack. The same folder answers an LFB audit letter, a D&O renewal request, a property-insurance panel review and a pre-sale solicitor enquiry. No one has to dig and no director is left explaining missing paperwork.
Tap any duty to see the standard, the threshold and the service that closes it. Must mandatory · Conditional depends on block profile · Core partnership spine
Mandatory on every multi-occupied residential building. Type 1 (common parts, non-destructive) is the default for small conversions; Type 2 or 3 where the assessor needs to sample flats. Kept under review, refreshed annually.
Fire Risk Assessment service →Quarterly checks of common-parts fire doors on buildings over 11 m (Reg 10). Annual competent inspection on buildings under 11 m. Flat entrance doors checked annually on a best-endeavours basis above 11 m.
Fire Door Inspection service →Service interval: six-monthly for a BS 5839-1 communal system, annually for a BS 5839-6 domestic system. Type and category set at FRA; HSE designs, services and certifies both.
Fire Alarm service →Monthly flick test (delegable to caretaker), annual three-hour duration test by a competent electrician. Covered in FRA scope; certified by our NICEIC electrical lead under BS 5266.
Emergency Lighting service →Non-destructive review is part of every Type 1 FRA. A standalone survey is recommended for Victorian conversions where the original fabric has been altered across compartment lines (kitchen extensions through a party wall, stair replastering, new service penetrations).
Remedial Works service →Periodic inspection of the common-parts electrical installation at maximum five-year intervals, tightened where prior EICR or FRA records C1, C2 or Fi coding. Not the same as the in-flat EICR (landlord/leaseholder duty).
Portable appliance testing of any landlord-retained equipment on the common parts, vacuum cleaners, heaters, lift control-room kit, garden strimmers. Annual for office-style risk; 1–2-yearly for domestic-style.
Duty to manage ACMs in common parts of buildings constructed before 2000. One-off management survey, written plan kept under review, annual re-inspection of any ACMs left in place.
Applies where the block has a communal cold-water tank, calorifier, booster pump or communal hot-water circuit. Written risk assessment (2-yearly review minimum), scheme of control, monthly sentinel-outlet temperature checks, annual tank inspection.
Formal inspection of common parts for Cat 1 and Cat 2 hazards, damp and mould, excess cold, falls on stairs, electrical safety, fire. Run at FRA stage; a standalone scan is appropriate pre-acquisition or after an LA enforcement approach.
Remedial Works service →Triggered whenever qualifying works cost more than £250 per contributing leaseholder. Two-stage: Notice of Intention (30-day observation), Notice of Estimates (30-day observation). HSE prepares the packs; your solicitor serves them.
Compliance Packages service →A practical necessity for volunteer boards. Annual 45-minute induction covering RP duties, article 32(10) personal exposure, Companies Act fiduciary duties and insurance-panel expectations.
A 12-month shared calendar tracking every inspection, test, review and Section 20 window. 60-, 30- and 14-day reminders at each deadline, stops compliance slipping between director handovers and agent changes.
Compliance Packages service →Bound folder (digital and physical) cross-referring every inspection log, risk assessment, test certificate and register to the statutory duty it discharges. Issued at each anniversary, the document an underwriter or buyer’s solicitor will ask for.
A small London block doesn’t always need an FRA in isolation, but a sale, a lender query, an insurance renewal or an LFB notice will demand one. Period stock typically needs a sequence of proportionate upgrades, not a rebuild. Below: what triggers the assessment, what we look at, and the upgrades that most often follow.
A read on current selective and additional licensing schemes, London Fire Brigade enforcement focus and Building Safety Regulator activity. The compliance baseline is the same in every borough; the enforcement temperature is not. Click through for the source.
Indicative regulatory landscape, kept current with each annual partnership review. Specific enforcement decisions sit with the relevant local housing authority and the London Fire Brigade. Borough-scheme designations are publicly published by each council under the Housing Act 2004 and Housing & Planning Act 2016.
Most director-liability cases don’t turn on deliberate breaches, they turn on gaps in the record. The partnership holds the calendar, assembles the evidence pack and documents each director’s induction, so the position stays defensible when boards rotate. See the 17-duty statutory checklist for the documentation we track.
Where an offence by the Responsible Person is committed with a director’s consent, connivance or neglect, that director is personally guilty, unlimited fine, and up to two years’ imprisonment where life is at risk.
Every director carries statutory duties to act within powers, promote success and exercise reasonable care and skill. In compliance, that typically maps to ensuring the calendar was held, and documented.
Local authorities can serve Improvement, Prohibition and Emergency Remedial notices on residential hazards. Consent or neglect by a director produces the same personal exposure as FSO art.32(10).
Longer read: the director’s duty guide →
A five-question picker that filters the 14-duty stack down to the items that actually sit on your board. Not legal advice, a structured indication. The partnership onboarding confirms.
Compliance doesn’t fail on the day a deadline passes, it fails in the weeks before, when no one is tracking it. Every duty on the block’s book runs on the same reminder cascade so the cadence holds when directors rotate, caretakers leave or the calendar moves.
HSE reserves the inspection date in your project manager’s diary, sends the lead director a “due in 60 days” summary, and pre-flags any leaseholder access that will be needed.
Date confirmed in writing to the lead director. HSE drafts the leaseholder access notice; the board or managing agent serves it. Caretaker briefed on what we’ll need on the day.
Final director reminder. Access map confirmed against the FRA scope. Inspector packs the right kit for period fabric, communal water tank or 3-hour EL discharge.
Visit attended on the booked date. Findings photographed, RAG-rated and uploaded the same day. Certificate issued within the standard window. Calendar advances to the next deadline; year-end pack updated.
Year 1 is reconstruction-heavy: gap audit, RAG register, first FRA, sequenced remediation. Year 2+ is steady-state, each duty hits its cadence anchor on a known date and the calendar moves forward without re-explaining the basics.
When a board member rotates mid-cycle, HSE issues a 14-day induction pack, current FRA, current calendar, article 32(10) briefing, to the incoming director. The cadence doesn’t pause for the handover.
Every reminder fires into a single year-end pack at each anniversary, cross-referred to the statutory duty, formatted for D&O renewal, lender query and pre-sale exchange. See the pack →
No fixed-month grid because every block’s cycle starts from the date of last service, not from January. The partnership tracks each anchor date individually.
An indicative planning calculator. The actual penalty on a Fire Safety Order or Housing Act prosecution is fact-specific and is set by the court using the Sentencing Council’s Health & Safety Offences Definitive Guideline. Fines under FSO 2005 article 32 are unlimited on conviction on indictment; the indicative bands below reflect publicly reported London prosecutions 2022 to 2025, not statutory ceilings.
Indicative figures only. Fines under FSO 2005 article 32 are unlimited on conviction on indictment. The numeric ranges shown reflect publicly reported London Fire Brigade prosecutions 2022 to 2025 and the Sentencing Council framework, not statutory caps. Civil penalties under Housing & Planning Act 2016 Schedule 9 are capped at £30,000 per breach. Section 20 recovery is capped at £250 per leaseholder per qualifying works under LTA 1985 section 20. This is an order-of-magnitude planning baseline, not a legal opinion.
A partnership runs from £1,100 a year. A single FSO prosecution runs from £44,500 on the indicative range above. Directors carry the personal exposure either way; the partnership documents that the board took compliance seriously.
Every certificate, inspection log, risk assessment and register produced during the year, consolidated, cross-referred to the statutory duty it discharges, and formatted for the three audiences that will ask for it: the D&O underwriter at renewal, the property-insurance panel at review, and the buyer’s solicitor at pre-sale.
First-year evidence pack is usually the point at which a board sees clearly, for the first time, what was in place and what was missing. Delivered at each partnership anniversary, digital + physical binding.
One annual fee covering the recurring stack. Quoted as a fixed written quote after a 30-minute scoping call. One-off items (asbestos management survey, Type 4 FRA, remedial works) are priced separately at the published service-page rates and routed through Section 20 where the threshold is triggered.
Pre-1945 Victorian or Edwardian house conversion, under 11m, no communal water system
Typical London small-block partnership, the baseline most RTM boards land on
Low-rise purpose-built or substantial conversion, 11–18m falls into the upper band
Boards running 2+ blocks, or a single listed building with heritage constraints on fabric
A 30-minute scoping call with Kevin or Thomas is the fastest way to a fixed, written quote inside 48 hours. If the partnership isn’t right for your block, we’ll tell you on the call.
Indicative pricing only. Partnership prices above are typical Apr 2026 London ranges and exclude VAT; final scope and fee are confirmed after a 30-minute scoping call with a director. Written quotes are fixed for 30 days from issue. One-off items outside the partnership: first-visit asbestos management survey £360–£620; Type 4 intrusive FRA £2,500–£6,500 depending on access; remedial works priced at the published Remedial Works service rates. Section 20 consultation administrative support is included within the partnership fee; leaseholder-facing legal service (notice drafting on disputed works) is separately quoted.
HSE Property Checks operates across all 32 London boroughs plus the City of London. The map below plots the 25 boroughs in which our most recent 100 invoiced small-block projects were delivered, fire risk assessment, FDIS fire-door inspection, Victorian compartmentation survey, emergency lighting, EICR and Section 20 consultation support for freeholders, RMCs and Right to Manage boards.
Updated, April 2026
*Each project carries multiple scope lines, counts reflect the aggregate service mix across our most recent 100 invoiced small-block projects.
Click any borough for project counts, postcodes covered and local context that shapes the compliance brief for small-block boards in that area. Counts accumulate direct and adjoining-borough work from the last-100-project cohort.
3 of the last 100 projects completed in and around Barking & Dagenham (IG11). Largely 1970s to 1990s low rise purpose built blocks that acquired RMC or RTM freeholds through Right to Manage schemes in the 2015 to 2020 cycle. Typical scope: BS 9792 Type 1 FRA and first cycle communal fire door inspection under FSO Article 17.
5 of the last 100 projects completed in and around Barnet (NW4, EN5). Mix of interwar semi detached conversions in Finchley, Hendon and Golders Green alongside small purpose built blocks near High Barnet. Common enquiry: a volunteer director board inheriting a block with a lapsed EICR and a stale fire risk assessment. Reconstruction audits are routine here.
3 of the last 100 projects completed in and around Bexley (DA5). Low rise purpose built blocks in Sidcup, Bexleyheath and Welling where freeholder enquiries typically arrive pre sale. Standard scope: BS 9792 FRA, common parts EICR on a 5 year cycle, and the year end insurance panel evidence pack.
4 engagements in and around Brent (NW9, NW10). Mansion block and conversion stock across Queen's Park, Willesden and Kensal Rise typically sits under the 11m Regulation 10 threshold, so annual competent fire door inspection applies rather than FS(E)R 2022 quarterly common parts checks.
5 of the last 100 projects completed in and around Bromley (BR1, BR3, SE20). Mostly 1960s to 1980s low rise blocks in Beckenham, Penge and Shortlands. Partnerships typically include a HHSRS communal hazard scan alongside the BS 9792 Type 1 FRA at year one onboarding.
25 of the last 100 projects completed in and around Camden (NW1, NW5, with adjacent Islington and Westminster spillover). High Victorian conversion density in Kentish Town, Chalk Farm, Dartmouth Park and Primrose Hill. Typical scope: BS 9792 Type 2 FRA, protected common stair upgrade, and FDIS inspection of original four panel doors with intumescent strip retrofit to FD30.
6 of the last 100 projects completed in and around the City of London (EC4). Limited residential stock in the Square Mile, but a cluster of Clerkenwell fringe warehouse conversions and mansion blocks across EC1 to EC4. Mixed use premises (commercial below, residential above) bring the FSO commercial premises regime into scope alongside the residential duties.
3 of the last 100 projects completed in and around Croydon (CR0). Local authority Environmental Health enforcement is above the London average on HHSRS hazards and damp and mould, so partnerships here typically include an HHSRS communal hazard scan as a year one deliverable rather than a reactive one.
5 engagements in and around Ealing (W3, W5, W7, W13). Interwar Victorian revival and mansion block stock. Common judgement call: original stone dust plaster stair ceilings and whether they retain 30 minutes of fire resistance without destructive testing.
3 of the last 100 projects completed in and around Enfield (EN3, with scoping enquiries across EN1, EN2 and EN5). Low rise purpose built blocks in Enfield Town, Palmers Green and Bush Hill Park. Partnerships typically include Section 20 consultation support on first cycle fire door replacement programmes.
4 of the last 100 projects completed in and around Greenwich (SE3, with adjacent SE10 and SE7 spillover). Period stock conversions in Blackheath, Charlton and Westcombe Park alongside newer Greenwich Peninsula blocks. Partnerships include BS 9792 Type 2 FRA with a heritage aware compartmentation walk for conservation area blocks.
18 of the last 100 projects completed in and around Hackney (E9, with adjacent E5, E8 and N16 spillover). Dense Victorian conversion RTM stock in Homerton, Hackney Central, Dalston and Clapton. Typical scope: BS 9792 Type 2 FRA, FDIS inspection, and director liability briefing for volunteer boards new to the RMC or RTM structure.
7 of the last 100 projects completed in and around Hammersmith & Fulham (SW6, W12). Mansion blocks in Fulham alongside Victorian terraces converted to 3 or 4 flats in Shepherd's Bush and Hammersmith. FDIS flat entrance door inspection is the most invoked service line in this cluster.
8 of the last 100 projects completed in and around Haringey (N4, with adjacent N7, N8 and N16). Finsbury Park, Harringay and Tottenham Victorian conversions with heavy Article 4 direction HMO overlap. Partnership routinely coordinates compliance across the RTM block and the individual HMO licences where both regimes apply.
3 of the last 100 projects completed in and around Harrow (HA1, with scoping across HA2 and HA3). Low rise purpose built blocks near Harrow on the Hill, Wealdstone and Headstone. Standard annual partnership stack: BS 9792 FRA, FDIS door inspection, EICR on a 5 year cycle, PAT on common parts appliances.
2 engagements in and around Havering (RM1 to RM14). Outer east stock predominantly 1960s to 1980s purpose built blocks in Romford, Hornchurch and Rainham. Travel is absorbed within the standard annual partnership fee, with no separate callout charge.
3 of the last 100 projects completed in and around Hillingdon (UB4, UB5). Mix of interwar conversions and postwar low rise blocks in Hayes, Northolt and Uxbridge. Typical onboarding trigger: a new director arriving to find no current FRA on file and no clear handover from the outgoing board.
3 of the last 100 projects completed in and around Hounslow (TW3, with adjacent TW4 and TW7). Mansion block and small purpose built stock near Hounslow Central, Isleworth and Osterley. Partnership tier for a 6 to 10 flat block typically lands at £1,500 to £1,750 per year all inclusive.
22 of the last 100 projects completed in and around Islington (N1, with N7, EC1 and E1 adjacency). The densest Victorian conversion RTM cluster in our book: Canonbury, Barnsbury, Highbury, Angel and Holloway conversions at 4 to 6 flats. The protected common stair is the single most audited asset on every Islington FRA we issue.
14 engagements in and around Kensington & Chelsea (W8, W10, W11, SW3, SW5, SW7). High value mansion block and conversion stock under strict fabric conservation constraints. BS 9991:2024 heritage guidance drives most compartmentation scoping calls; remedial specs routinely need conservation area consent.
2 engagements in and around Kingston upon Thames (KT1, KT2). Outer south west stock predominantly 1960s to 1990s low rise. Partnership absorbs travel within the standard annual fee, with no callout or mileage premium at this distance.
20 of the last 100 projects completed in and around Lambeth (SW4, with adjacent Southwark and Wandsworth spillover). Heavy reconstruction audit share in Clapham, Brixton, Stockwell and Streatham RMCs formed 2010 to 2020 with patchy inherited records from the previous freeholder's managing agent. BS 9792 Type 2 FRA is routine.
9 of the last 100 projects completed in and around Lewisham (SE13, SE23, with adjacent SE3, SE4 and SE14). Mix of ex council infill and Victorian terraces in Lewisham Central, Forest Hill and Ladywell. Partnership frequently coordinates with local Environmental Health on HHSRS related communal hazards.
4 engagements in and around Merton (SW19, SW20, CR4). Period mansion blocks near Wimbledon, Wimbledon Village and Raynes Park. Typical partnership at Standard tier with an annual BS 9792 Type 2 FRA and annual FDIS inspection.
4 of the last 100 projects completed in and around Newham (E16, with adjacent E6 and E13). Recent new build conversion blocks in Silvertown, Custom House and Canning Town where the developer has handed the freehold to a Right to Manage or resident management company. Newer stock needs mapping to the 2023 and later statutory framework (FSA 2021, FS(E)R 2022, s.156 BSA 2022).
3 of the last 100 projects completed in and around Redbridge (IG8). Woodford Green and Wanstead mansion block stock. Partnership typically includes BS 9792 Type 1 FRA and an annual FDIS inspection of communal fire doors; emergency lighting is tested on 3 hour duration at each anniversary.
4 of the last 100 projects completed in and around Richmond upon Thames (TW2, TW11). Twickenham, Teddington and St Margarets small block boards. Partnership scoping typically addresses heritage aware compartmentation judgement on period joinery and protected stairs in conservation area blocks.
28 of the last 100 projects completed in and around Southwark (SE1, SE15, SE17, SE22, with adjacent Lambeth and Lewisham spillover). The largest single cluster in our book. Bermondsey, Peckham, Walworth and East Dulwich Victorian conversion RTMs dominate; SE17 alone accounts for six invoiced jobs in the six month receipt sample.
2 engagements in and around Sutton (SM1, SM5). Outer south low rise stock. Partnership absorbs travel within the standard annual fee; quoted separately only for emergency out of schedule callouts.
15 of the last 100 projects completed in and around Tower Hamlets (E1, E2, E14). Canary Wharf and Limehouse new build conversion blocks dominate; note that most E14 stock exceeds 18 metres, so the HRB regime under BSA 2022 Part 4 applies. Those blocks are served via our block management hub, not this small block partnership.
3 engagements in and around Waltham Forest (E10, E17). Walthamstow Victorian conversion stock has increasingly been acquired by RTM companies across 2020 to 2025; Leyton and Leytonstone follow the same pattern. Partnership enquiries are trending up with every quarter.
10 of the last 100 projects completed in and around Wandsworth (SW11, SW17, SW18). Battersea, Tooting, Earlsfield and Balham small block work. SW11 alone accounts for three invoiced BS 9792 Type 2 FRAs in the six month sample; riverside mansion block stock drives a higher share of heritage aware compartmentation scoping.
15 of the last 100 projects completed in and around Westminster (W1, W2, SW1, NW8, WC2). Predominantly mansion block and prime central mixed use stock in Marylebone, Belgravia, St John's Wood and Covent Garden. Fire safety scoping is routinely complicated by retail tenants below residential units, which brings FSO commercial premises duties into scope alongside the residential duties.
Based on our last 100 invoiced small-block projects across London. “In and around” counts accumulate direct-borough work plus work in adjoining boroughs, so totals exceed 100 by design. Scoping-only boroughs reflect advisory and quote engagements where invoicing has not yet landed in the Oct 2025–Mar 2026 window.
Thirty days from your first phone call to a live compliance calendar. We walk the block, build a year-one plan with costs against every finding, draft any Section 20 consultation packs, and deliver the priority works. By day 30 your shared calendar is live with reminders running against every deadline. Each step below shows what we do that week, what you sign off, and what you receive.
A 30-minute call with Kevin or Thomas, not a call-centre. You walk us through the block, the board, what you’ve inherited, and anything live from an insurer, lender or the fire brigade. Written quote back inside 48 hours, fixed for 30 days from issue.
Kevin and Thomas attend in person, never subcontracted. We walk the block against all fourteen duties, open the stair, check every communal fire door and verify the compartmentation you can see from the common parts. You get a dated Red–Amber–Green register with costs against every finding, no “to be confirmed.”
One document that sequences your year, what we close first, what’s cyclic, what needs a Section 20 consultation pack before works can start, and where your Directors’ & Officers’ insurance position sits today. You sign off; we invoice year one only after you do.
Priority closures go in. One project manager runs the programme end-to-end. One leaseholder-communication stream, you approve it before it goes out. Photo evidence loaded to your shared folder the same day each finding clears, not at the end, not on request.
Your 12-month compliance calendar goes live with 60-, 30- and 14-day reminders on every deadline. Each director gets a 45-minute article 32(10) briefing before your next board meeting. Year-end evidence pack starts assembling from day one.
Anonymised to protect the board, borough, block size, year of onboarding and scope are accurate. What to read for: the director who inherited the problem, the window from instruction to evidence, and the commercial outcome at renewal.
A six-flat 1890s conversion transferred to an RTM company in 2022. New directors arrived in late 2024 and found no current FRA, an expired EICR, and a fire-alarm contract that had lapsed when the previous contractor went into administration.
HSE's year-one reconstruction audit uncovered an unknown compartmentation condition behind the original lath-and-plaster in the common stair. A targeted Type 4 FRA in Q2 confirmed the stair retained 30 minutes of resistance; no rebuild required. Fire doors upgraded with intumescent strips on FD30 frames; alarm reinstated as a BS 5839-6 grade D system.
Solo freeholder who had held the block since 1998, running compliance through an informal network of local tradespeople. 2025 trigger: a prospective buyer on one of the flats asked for evidence of current fire-safety compliance and the freeholder could not produce it.
HSE scoped a PAS 79-1 Type 2 FRA, an annual fire-door inspection and a fresh EICR. The board was told which records the solicitor would need on a pre-sale. Partnership entered at the Essential tier.
Eight-flat 1976 low-rise block where the RMC had bought the freehold in 2013. The fire-alarm system was original-install and no longer serviceable; original flat entrance doors were well below FD30.
Year-one programme: replace the alarm system (BS 5839-6 grade D); replace all eight flat entrance doors (BS 8214 install); fresh common-parts EICR. Section 20 consultation triggered for the door programme (£34,000 total works). Notice of Intention issued Feb 2025, Notice of Estimates May 2025; works completed Q3 2025.
Five-flat Edwardian mansion block, five co-freehold directors. LFB audit letter served after a minor kitchen fire in flat 3. No current FRA recorded; original timber doors throughout.
HSE mobilised a BS 9792 Type 4 FRA within 10 days of instruction. Compartmentation confirmed behind period joinery; doors could be upgraded rather than replaced, preserving the heritage. LFB satisfied at follow-up audit. Partnership entered at Standard tier with a note that heritage works should always be scoped against the conservation officer.
Verified reviews from freeholders and volunteer directors, named role and borough only; block address withheld by request.
The first year was mostly about finding out what was actually in place. The year-end pack was the first time I’d ever seen our block’s compliance laid out in one document. The underwriter used it at renewal without asking a single follow-up question.
We had three different contractors running separate bits of compliance and none of them talked to each other. HSE consolidated it into one calendar and one invoice, at about the same total annual cost as we were paying piecemeal.
The LFB letter arrived on a Friday. Kevin was on site on the Monday. Type 4 FRA completed in two weeks. What I valued most was the direct communication. I always knew where we stood with the authority.
Yes. Where an RTM company holds the management function of a block, the company becomes a Responsible Person under the FSO 2005. Section 32 of the FSO makes contravention an offence; where the offence places relevant persons at risk of death or serious injury, it is triable either way with an unlimited fine on conviction on indictment and imprisonment up to two years.
A director is personally exposed where an offence by the company is committed with the consent, connivance or neglect of that director, see article 32(10) FSO. That is in addition to civil claims and the London Fire Brigade's power to name individual directors in enforcement notices.
A purpose-built block of flats follows BS 9792:2025 with an assessment type selected by the competent person (Type 1 to Type 4). A Victorian house converted into flats typically sits between PAS 79-1:2020 (simple premises) and BS 9792 depending on the presence of a common stairwell, the number of storeys and whether the original fabric has been upgraded to defined fire-resisting standards.
Most London conversions with a shared stair fall under BS 9792 Type 2 or Type 3 because the communal escape route is in scope. The assessor selects the method; HSE confirms and documents the choice in the cover sheet so the evidence pack stands up to lender, insurer and LFB scrutiny.
Only if the building is 11 metres or taller. Regulation 10 of the FS(E)R 2022 imposes quarterly common-parts fire-door checks and annual flat-entrance-door checks (on a best-endeavours basis) on multi-occupied residential buildings over 11 metres.
Most Victorian conversions are under 11 metres and fall back on the FSO Article 17 duty to keep fire doors in efficient working order and good repair. Industry practice, and the position HSE writes into the partnership for small blocks, is a competent FDIS inspection at least annually, with quarterly visual checks carried out by the on-site caretaker or managing agent.
Yes, RTM company directors are elected and can be changed under the RTM company's articles (the standard model articles allow a simple member resolution). The compliance cycle continues unaffected because the Responsible Person is the company, not the individual director.
Where a new director joins mid-cycle, HSE issues an induction pack, current FRA, evidence of the last fire-door inspection, the annual compliance calendar, and a short director-liability briefing, within 14 days of notification. The priority is avoiding a gap between outgoing and incoming directors where no one is tracking the calendar.
Indicative HSE pricing for a London 4–10 flat Victorian conversion, October 2025 to March 2026: FRA (BS 9792 Type 2 or PAS 79-1 as appropriate) £450–£850; annual FDIS inspection £180–£420; fire alarm service £120–£360; emergency lighting duration test £140–£320; EICR on the common parts £220–£480; legionella risk assessment £180–£340; asbestos management survey (one-off) £360–£620.
The RTM Compliance Partnership bundle (£1,100–£1,750 per year depending on block size and risk) brings every recurring item into one fixed annual figure with one-off items priced separately.
Section 20 of the Landlord & Tenant Act 1985 (supplemented by SI 2003/1987) requires a freeholder, RMC or RTM to consult leaseholders before incurring any qualifying works cost that will exceed £250 per contributing leaseholder. The statutory process has two stages: a Notice of Intention with a 30-day observation period; then a Notice of Estimates (at least two estimates, one from a contractor unconnected to the landlord) with a further 30-day observation period.
Failure to consult properly caps the recoverable amount at £250 per leaseholder for the works. For a small 6-flat block, that is the difference between recovering £30,000 of fire-door remediation and recovering £1,500.
Only if your block is a Higher-Risk Building, at least 18 metres in height or at least 7 storeys, AND containing at least 2 residential units. Most Victorian conversions and low-rise purpose-built blocks are 3 or 4 storeys and under 18 metres, so BSA Part 4 does not apply.
Your regime is FSO 2005 + FSA 2021 + FS(E)R 2022 (Regulation 10 only if over 11 metres). HSE does not invoice HRB services to buildings that are not HRBs; we confirm status in writing at scoping. If your block is an HRB, see our block-management hub which carries the full Part 4 regime.
A director-liability evidence pack is a bound folder (digital and physical) containing every current compliance document, FRA, fire-door register, alarm service log, EICR, legionella log, asbestos register, plus a summary cover sheet cross-referring each item to the statutory duty it discharges.
Directors' and Officers' insurers and property-insurance panels increasingly ask to see compliance evidence before renewing or underwriting blocks with volunteer-director governance. A clean evidence pack typically shortens renewal and widens the panel of insurers willing to quote; a missing or patchy pack typically produces either a refusal or a steeper premium load.
The statutory duties on the common parts are identical. A co-freehold company and an RTM company are both corporate vehicles holding some or all of the management function; both sit as the Responsible Person under the FSO; both carry the Section 20 consultation obligation; both carry the ACoP L8 legionella duty on communal systems.
The governance difference, co-freehold companies tend to have leaseholder shareholders, while RTMs have leaseholder members, does not affect the compliance duty stack. HSE delivers the same partnership to either structure.
For a building over 11 metres, Regulation 10(4) FS(E)R 2022 requires flat-entrance-door inspections on a best-endeavours basis, the duty is to take reasonable steps to inspect, not to force entry. Document the inspection attempts, send written follow-up (first-class post, not just email), and record the outcome on the fire-door register.
Where the flat entrance door is a fire-resisting door under the lease, a persistent refusal may be grounds for a lease-enforcement letter from the freeholder's solicitor, but that is a legal step, not a compliance step. HSE captures missed inspections in the annual report so the director board has a clean audit trail.
Pricing is a fixed annual fee confirmed after a 30-minute scoping call. For a standard 4–6 flat Victorian conversion the partnership typically lands at £1,200–£1,500 per year including the annual FRA, annual FDIS inspection, annual fire alarm and emergency-lighting service, the legionella regime on a single communal tank, EICR once every five years, the compliance calendar, a director-liability briefing, and the year-end evidence pack. For a 7–10 flat block the band is £1,500–£1,800.
One-off items (first-visit asbestos management survey, Type 4 intrusive FRA, remedial works) are priced separately at the standard service-page rates.
We call this a reconstruction audit. The 30-day onboarding runs: week 1, block walk-through and title review; week 2, gap audit against the 14-duty stack, producing a Red/Amber/Green report with cost bands; week 3, statutory-gap report and Section 20 scoping if remediation will exceed the £250 threshold per leaseholder; week 4, first handover to the annual compliance calendar.
A reconstruction audit typically uncovers missing asbestos registers, lapsed EICRs, and absent or out-of-date FRAs; HSE prioritises FRA and fire-door inspection in the first quarter so the block is audit-defensible while the longer-dated items are sequenced.
The FSO 2005 (as amended by s.156 BSA 2022) requires the Responsible Person to record the assessment in writing and to keep it under review; the FSA 2021 confirmed the assessment must consider flat entrance doors, compartmentation walls and the external wall system.
A change in tenant alone does not trigger an FRA review. A refurbishment that affects compartmentation, new kitchen layout cutting through a party wall, stairwell replastered, new door set, penetrations for extractor fans, new boiler flue, does. Industry practice is an annual FRA review on small blocks, with an interim review triggered by any material change. HSE manages both as part of the partnership.
Yes, Directors' and Officers' (D&O) liability insurance is available to RTM and RMC companies through specialist brokers. Typical policies cover the defence costs of an investigation or prosecution, plus any civil damages awarded, subject to exclusions for deliberate breaches. Premiums for a small London block D&O policy are typically £200–£500 per year.
HSE is not an insurance broker and does not sell D&O; what we provide is the evidence pack that the D&O underwriter will ask for at renewal, which is the piece most boards struggle to assemble themselves.
PAS 79-1:2020 is the Publicly Available Specification for fire risk assessment of premises other than housing. For residential blocks it rarely applies as the primary standard, BS 9792:2025 is the methodology for blocks of flats.
PAS 79-1 can be appropriate where a conversion contains a single residential unit above commercial premises or where the premises fall outside BS 9792's scope. HSE uses BS 9792 as default for all residential blocks including Victorian conversions with 3 or more flats; PAS 79-1 only comes into scope in borderline premises (a single maisonette over a shop) or where the competent person documents a reasoned preference.
In principle yes, RTM companies carry the service-charge recovery rights formerly held by the freeholder (subject to the terms of the lease). The standard lease permits the recovery of compliance costs reasonably incurred in the discharge of the freeholder/RTM's obligations.
Section 20 consultation is required for any qualifying works exceeding £250 per leaseholder; a routine annual compliance partnership typically sits below that threshold and is recoverable without Section 20 notice, subject to the usual reasonableness test under section 19 LTA 1985. Leaseholders retain the right to challenge reasonableness at the First-tier Tribunal. Take specialist leasehold advice on any disputed item.
A BS 9792 Type 2 FRA on a 4–8 flat Victorian conversion typically takes half a day on site and 5–7 working days for the written report. Type 3 (all flats non-destructive) takes a full day on site plus 7–10 working days for the report. Type 4 (intrusive) takes 2–3 days on site depending on compartmentation scope and 14–21 working days for the report.
HSE issues a draft within the stated window; the director board has one week to comment before the final PDF is lodged in the evidence pack.
No, EWS1 is a lender-driven valuation form that applies to residential buildings typically 11 metres or taller with external-wall fire-safety uncertainty. A standard 3-storey Victorian conversion under 11 metres does not require an EWS1 and a lender should not request one.
The RICS guidance is explicit that EWS1 should not be sought on buildings below the height threshold except in very narrow circumstances. Where a lender asks for an EWS1 on a sub-11m block, HSE writes a short no-EWS1-required letter citing the RICS criteria; the letter is usually sufficient to unblock the valuation.
The immediate effect depends on the duty. A lapsed FRA exposes the Responsible Person to FSO enforcement (alterations/prohibition notice, or prosecution). A lapsed EICR invalidates the periodic electrical certification. A lapsed legionella scheme breaches ACoP L8 and can trigger HSE intervention on a complaint. A lapsed fire-door inspection on an 11m+ building breaches Reg 10 FS(E)R 2022.
The compliance calendar at the core of the RTM partnership sends 60-day, 30-day and 14-day reminders specifically to stop deadlines being missed. Where the director board inherits a block with historical lapses, HSE prioritises the reconstruction audit to close the gap in the first full quarter.
A pre-sale buyer or their solicitor will expect: current FRA (within 12 months), fire-door register with last inspection, fire-alarm and emergency-lighting service logs, current EICR, legionella risk assessment and monthly log, asbestos management survey and register, last three years of Section 20 consultation packs if any, and a summary cover sheet cross-referring each item to the statutory duty it discharges.
HSE's year-end evidence pack is assembled to this exact standard; pre-sale exchange is typically smoother on blocks that have been in the partnership for two or more years because the pack is already assembled.
