If you hear a bleeping noise from your smoke and/or carbon monoxide detector when no smoke or heat is present or if you think it is not working, you should report this to Beacon.
What to do in the event of a fire
You should leave your home by the safest route possible. Ensure you take all members of your household and visitors with you. If there’s smoke, keep low where the air is clear. Before opening doors, check if the handle is warm with the back of your hand, if it is, there might be a fire on the other side. You may need to be prepared to vacate the premises via a different route. If no other route is possible, line the base of the door with a wet towel to help reduce smoke ingress and move to the furthest point away from the fire, closing all doors between you and the fire. Try to make others aware of the fire and ensure you dial 999 as soon as possible.
Some general advice:
- Test your smoke alarm regularly
- Plan your escape routes in advance (always good to have an alternative emergency route prepared)
- Keep mobility aids and your phone nearby at night
- Close all doors and switch off and unplug appliances before going to bed
- Do not place candles near curtains or other materials and never leave them unattended
- Ensure ovens and cookers are turned off after use
- Do not smoke in bed and check all cigarettes are properly extinguished
- Switch off and unplug electrical appliances and charging devices
- Never overload electrical sockets, use only extension leads with individual switches
- Do not store bottled gas or cylinders in your home unless for medical purposes. Please advise Beacon if this is the case
- Make sure that all stairs, landings and passages forming an escape route are kept clear
- Make sure you are safe if lighting fires or BBQs in your garden – more advice here
Advice for flats, sheltered housing and accommodation with communal areas
If you live in a building with a communal area ,the fire alarms are tested, serviced and maintained regularly by a competent person and we carry out regular fire risk assessments of the shared areas of all of our properties. The buildings are designed with fire safety in mind and as such, in order to maintain this level of safety you should follow these steps to keep you and your neighbours’ safe;
- Do not wedge open self-closing doors – either in your own property or in the communal area. These doors are designed to stop the spread of smoke and fire
- Do not keep items of furniture or decoration in the communal areas. These areas are required to be ‘sterile’ so that, in the event of smoke and fire, the communal areas are clear for a safe evacuation (if a full evacuation policy is in place for your block).
- Keep all exits in your home and the communal areas clear for ease of access/egress in the event of fire
- Test the smoke alarm in your own property weekly
If you have any concerns about your ability, or the ability of someone you know, to safely evacuate your home – such as a mobility or sensory impairment – please contact your Housing Officer who will arrange for someone to complete a Personal Emergency Evacuation Plan with you.
Have an e-scooter or e-bike?
E-scooters and e-bikes should be safe when used correctly, however lithium-ion batteries can cause serious fires, this can be due to damage, improper use or low quality parts.
It’s important you buy these from reputable sellers. Fires started by lithium-ion batteries can start without warning and spread rapidly. To find more advice, please visit the government website here.
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