Fire Safety Works

YMD Boon has been appointed to deliver extensive fire safety works at Bishop Stopford School in Kettering, Northamptonshire, supported by £1.2 million of Condition Improvement Fund (CIF) funding. The project addresses critical fire safety improvements across the school, ensuring compliance with the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005.

The CIF bid was supported by fire risk assessments, compartmentation surveys, condition surveys, and fire alarm inspections.

Key works include the installation of fire breaks within ceiling and roof voids to prevent the uncontrolled spread of fire and smoke, improving compartmentation and maintaining safe evacuation routes.

Fire-rated partitions were introduced along primary escape routes and high-risk areas such as science laboratories, workshops, and food technology rooms. Non-compliant doors were replaced with FD30-rated doors incorporating smoke seals, intumescent strips, self-closing mechanisms, and hold-open devices linked to the fire alarm system. Similarly, non-fire-rated glazing was upgraded to certified fire-rated alternatives.

The outdated fire alarm system was replaced with a fully compliant system, including automatic smoke and heat detection in high-risk areas, escape routes, and large ceiling voids, providing reliable early warning and improving emergency response.

The project will deliver a safer environment for pupils and staff, reinforce critical escape routes, and address the school’s urgent fire safety requirements.