BS 9991:2015

This standard BS 9991:2015 Fire safety in the design, management and use of residential buildings. Code of practice is classified in these ICS categories:

• 13.220.01 Protection against fire in general
• 91.040.30 Residential buildings

This British Standard gives recommendations and guidance on the design, management and use of the following building types, to achieve reasonable standards of fire safety for all people in and around:

1. dwellings (single-family dwelling houses, self-contained flats or maisonettes);

2. residential accommodation blocks (e.g. for students or hospital staff), with individual bedrooms and the provision of kitchen/sanitary facilities constructed within a fire compartment;

3. specialized housing.

NOTE 1 Recommendations for fire safety in the design, management and use of buildings other than residential buildings are given in BS 9999.

It is not applicable to hotels, caravans/mobile homes, hospitals, residential care homes, places of lawful detention or hostels.

NOTE 2 Requirements for means of escape from caravans and mobile homes are given in BS 3632.

This British Standard is applicable to the design of new buildings, and to material alterations, extensions and material change of use of an existing building.

NOTE 3 Attention is drawn to the Building Regulations 2010 [1] and equivalent regional variations [3] to [5] in respect of the definition of material alterations, extensions and material change of use.

It also provides recommendations and guidance on the ongoing management of fire safety in a building throughout the entire life cycle of the building, including measures for designers to ensure that the overall design of a building assists and enhances the management of fire safety. It can be used as a tool for assessing existing buildings, although fundamental change in line with its recommendations might be limited or not practicable.

The recommendations and guidance given in this British Standard are intended to safeguard the lives of building occupants and fire-fighters. Whilst some of the recommendations and guidance might also assist in the achievement of other fire safety objectives – such as protection of property, the environment, communities and business/service viability – additional measures might be necessary which are outside the scope of this British Standard.

This British Standard does not cover fire safety design strategies for extreme events such as terrorist actions.