Unite Students will be ensuring their student accommodation is safe and complies with fire safety legislation and regulation, thanks to a partnership with Avon Fire & Rescue Service (AF&RS).
The Service is the Primary Authority for Unite Students which provide student accommodation in the AF&RS area as well as other parts of the UK.
During the last year AF&RS and Unite Students have already worked together to deliver safety messages to students including presentations and social media campaigns.
The partnership means AF&RS will provide the organisation with advice and guidance so that they can make sure their buildings are safe places to live.
The partnership will also help Unite Students to ensure their properties comply with fire safety laws under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005.
Head of Technical Fire Safety at AF&RS, Station Manager Steve Quinton, said: “This partnership is excellent news for any students living in Unite Student properties.
“Not only can they be reassured that the properties are built and maintained to the latest fire safety standards, it also shows the commitment of the organisation to reduce the risk of a fire and protect the safety of their students.
“We take fire safety extremely seriously and are delighted to have entered into this partnership. Unite Students will be using the knowledge and expertise of our staff to ensure all their properties comply with the law.
“The partnership ensures that the advice and guidance they are given is consistent and is applied to all their buildings and developments, even those in other parts of the UK.”
Alastair Weston, Safety Support Services Manager at Unite Students, said: “Unite Students is delighted to be working more closely with Avon Fire & Rescue Service on a number of projects as well as fire safety best practice and we will be welcoming one of their employees to join us for 21 hours a week.
“This closer relationship will help us make sure that our students are given the best support on how to avoid the risk of fire. We believe it will also support our business in empowering our employees, policies and procedures.
“Our city teams in Bristol and Bath already have a great relationship with the service and we are looking forward to developing this for the whole business.”
Fire and rescue services in England and Wales can enter into partnerships with businesses, charities or other organisations which operate across more than one local authority fire enforcement area – becoming their single point of contact for fire safety regulation advice.
The aim of the Primary Authority Partnership scheme is for fire and rescue services to develop effective partnerships with businesses that achieve a national consistency in delivering fire safety enforcement advice.
