Keeping you safe | Tenant news

Over the last few months, we’ve been carrying out fire door safety checks across all of Habinteg schemes to make sure they will protect you in the event of a fire.

We’ve also been checking that communal fire alarms are in good working order and carrying out annual fire risk assessments to ensure our buildings meet fire safety regulations.

Fire safety improvement works

We’ll be carrying out improvement works to many of our schemes in 2022. One of the first is at our Bramston Close scheme in Hainault, Essex, where we’re carrying out compartmentation work which involves dividing its buildings into smaller sections to help contain and slow down the spread of smoke and fire.

Staying fire safe

There are things we can all do to help prevent fires and to make sure we know what to do if one breaks out in our home or scheme.

Communal areas

It's important to make sure you and your neighbours are doing everything you can to keep each other fire safe.

This includes:

• Making sure fire doors are closed and not propped open at any time
• Not storing items like bicycles, mobility scooters, buggies and furniture in communal areas. They can block your escape route.

In your home

Inside of your home:

• check your smoke alarms every Tuesday – #TestItTuesday is a nationwide campaign to remind us all to test our smoke alarms weekly
• take care when cooking – never use chip pans and always check appliances are off when you’re finished
• if you smoke indoors, make sure you put your cigarettes out completely. Never smoke in bed or around soft furnishings, and keep lighters and matches out of the reach of children
• never use appliances with faulty plugs or damaged wires. You can find more tips on how to improve electrical safety at home by visiting electricalsafetyfirst.org.uk/guidance/safety-around-the-home
• never leave candles unattended and don’t place them on or near anything flammable
• make sure you know the evacuation strategy for your building in the event of a fire. If you’re not sure, please contact your Neighbourhood Co-ordinator for further advice.

Your safety matters

If you see anything you think could affect the safety of your building or something that raises a concern, please contact Habinteg Direct by email, direct@habinteg.org.uk or call 0300 365 3100.

If you'd like further advice, you can also contact your local fire service, who can help you with a free fire safety home visit. Visit fireservice.co.uk/safety to find out more.