The Enforcement Policy lays out the procedure that businesses and others being regulated can expect Inspectors of the Community Safety Protection and Technical Department to follow when they carry out their enforcement functions. It lays out the process that Inspectors must adhere to in deciding what action to take when undertaking their statutory duties to ensure that they act in an equitable, practical and consistent manner.
This page outlines the main points contained within the Enforcement Policy under the following headings.
- Who will carry out the enforcement duties?
- What action can Inspectors take?
- What can you do if you think you have not been treated fairly?
We welcome your comments on the enforcement policy and invite you to contact us.
The Fire Authority is a signatory to the Regulatory Compliance Code and the Enforcement Policy incorporates the principles contained within that Code.
The Business Fire Safety Team's commitment to you:
- We will draw up clear standards, setting out the level of service and performance the public and business people can expect to receive;
- We will deal with the public and business community in an open and honest way;
- We will provide a courteous, efficient and helpful service;
- We will respond promptly and positively to complaints about the service;
- We will ensure that enforcement action is proportionate to the risks in each case;
- We will carry out our duties in an equitable and consistent manner;
- We will maintain a management system to monitor and review the quality and nature of the enforcement activities undertaken in order to demonstrate the effectiveness of the policy with respect to its aims and objectives and to recommend changes and improvements.
Who will carry out the enforcement duties?
Only Inspectors authorised (ID and Authorisation Card) by the Chief Fire Officer may inspect your property and undertake enforcement duties. The Chief Fire Officer will only authorise Inspectors to carry out enforcement work in different areas of the law when he is satisfied with their level of qualification, training and experience.
What action can Inspectors take?
Inspectors will take into account the following criteria when deciding on the most appropriate course of action:-
- The seriousness of the offence;
- The past history of the offender;
- The confidence in management and the degree of wilfulness involved;
- The consequence of non-compliance;
- The likely effectiveness of the various enforcement options;
- Mandatory/discretionary duties.
In most cases action taken by Inspectors will be informal and will be:
- in the form of verbal advice
- in the form of a letter detailing any recommendations, or
- a formal letter listing works which are required to be carried out in order to comply with the legislation, and separately listing any additional recommendations.
Where a serious breach of legislation is noted during an inspection, or where there is a risk to safety, or where breaches of legislation exist and the history of the premises suggests that the work will not be completed without the need for formal action, a statutory notice will usually be served.
Failure to comply with a statutory notice will, other than in exceptional circumstances, result in prosecution. Recipients of notices will always be informed in writing of their rights to appeal and these will normally be on the rear of the notice. They will also be informed in writing of the consequences of non-compliance.
SFRS utilises the National Enforcement Register which is operated by National Fire Chiefs Council. The Enforcement Register has been moved to a new location and can be found via the NFCC website here. It is not currently possible to update the historic records and therefore if you have an enquiry about enforcement action taken by SFRS please contact us via email on details@frs.gov.uk.
