Working through the pandemic

Throughout the national coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic, our Fire Safety Team has worked hard to ensure residents and their homes are as safe as possible from fire. To do this, we’ve continued to deliver our servicing and repairs service along with our fire safety improvement works programmes including sprinkler checks and fire risk assessments (FRA).

Sprinkler checks

Some of our buildings have sprinklers fitted. Sprinklers are designed to supress a fire and can prove lifesaving. If you have sprinklers fitted our dedicated contractors, AJS Limited, will contact you when your sprinklers are due to be inspected and tested. You are required in accordance to your tenancy agreement or lease to provide access. The inspection and test usually takes no more than one hour to complete. If we have or AJS Limited has recently contacted you about your sprinklers and you haven’t booked an appointment, please call our dedicated contractors AJS Limited directly on 020 8597 7000 to arrange a date for the inspection.

Fire Risk Assessments

We have a legal duty to ensure our buildings, consisting of flats which share an internal area, have valid fire risk assessment (FRA). We’re pleased to say that for a number of months we have maintained a 100% compliance rate. This is often achieved through the help you give by providing access for us to complete the FRA – so thank you!

Network Homes’ appointed assessors from Savills will occasionally attempt to request access unannounced. They will always knock first and explain the purpose of their visit and the areas they need to inspect. It’s important to remember that all our assessors have ID and will show this when they arrive. We would be grateful if you could give them access, but if you have any concerns, please call us on 0300 373 3000. It’s always a good idea to do this while they are on site, as we can resolve any concerns or query at the time, without the need of rescheduling the visit.

How you can help prevent a fire

Like many other housing providers, we’ve had an increase of fires within our buildings over the last six months with arson as the most common cause for them. You can help us to keep you and your neighbours safe by doing the following:

1. Do not let unknown people into your building.
2. Let us know if the main entrance to your building is not secure.
3. Ensure there are no items left in the corridors – these are escape routes and they must always be clear.
4. Regularly test the fire alarms in your home - If you’re concerned that your detectors are not working please contact us.
5. Read the poster in the communal area (by the entrance) that tell you about the building’s fire strategy.
6. Check out and follow our fire safety top tips.