Do high-rise residents feel safe from building fires and what can help them feel safer?

Key findings

Fire safety in high-rise residential was a concern for all tenure groups, but particularly for those living in older buildings, on higher floors and/or residents that participants felt were vulnerable, such as those with cognitive or physical impairments.  

Although the Grenfell Tower fire raised or confirmed existing fire safety concerns, residents also felt that these concerns were taken more seriously since the fire.

Residents felt safe if they could trust in those responsible for the design and management of buildings, as well as neighbours to behave safely to prevent or respond. However, this trust was sometimes lacking particularly where residents felt that those responsible for high-rise buildings had prioritised cost saving above fire safety. 

Residents also said that they did not know enough about whether their building design could stop the spread of a fire or whether the fire safety equipment or evacuation procedures would work in a fire situation.  

In light of the above, residents felt they would feel safer if they were kept informed, consulted and listened to by those responsible for managing high-rise buildings. For example, they felt that building managers should inform them about the current safety assessment of their building and to listen to their concerns about fire safety.

Methodology

The study involved nine focus groups across three regions in England (London, North West and West Midlands), segmented by three tenure groups (social renters, private renters and owner occupiers) with a total of 50 participants taking part. 

The discussions introduced fire safety as a concept and then focused on mapping and understanding participant concerns. The focus groups ended with a discussion of solutions, including testing broad pre-formulated policy solutions.