P1-38 Response Accepted in Part Self-assessed

Require quarterly fire door checks

Recommendation

The owner and manager of every residential building containing separate dwellings (whether or not they are high-rise buildings) be required by law to carry out checks at not less than three-monthly intervals to ensure that all fire doors are fitted with effective self-closing devices in working order.

Published Evidence Summary
The following publicly available evidence relates to this recommendation:
According to the government, the Fire Safety (England) Regulations 2022 established a legal requirement for annual best-effort checks on flat entrance doors in residential buildings. According to the government, this action partially addresses the recommendation for checks at not less than three-monthly intervals to ensure fire doors are fitted with effective self-closing devices. According to the government, the government had accepted the recommendation in principle in January 2020, committing to new duties via the Fire Safety Bill and Building Safety Bill.
How was this assessed?
Assessed by gemini-2.5-flash on 19 Mar 2026
Checked data held on this site (government responses, progress updates, independent evidence)
External sources searched: www.gov.uk, www.legislation.gov.uk, hansard.parliament.uk
Jurisdiction
England
Section Reference
33.29b
Response
Accepted in Part
Accepted in Part UK Government
21 Jan 2020

The government accepted in principle all Phase 1 recommendations directed at central government. The Housing Secretary Robert Jenrick presented the formal response to Parliament on 21 January 2020, committing to new duties on building owners and managers through the Fire Safety Bill and Building Safety Bill, including requirements for premises information boxes, floor plans, lift inspections, fire door checks, evacuation signage, and fire safety instructions to residents.

Read Full Response
Progress Timeline
Official Report
26 Feb 2025

Completed via the Fire Safety (England) Regulations 2022. Annual best-effort checks on flat entrance doors introduced as a legal requirement.

Source
Source
Inquiry Grenfell Tower Inquiry
Report Grenfell Tower Inquiry: Phase 1 Report 30 Oct 2019
View Source
Responsible Bodies
UK Government Primary
Themes & Tags
Fire risk assessment failures High-rise fire evacuation policy Fire Doors Fire Safety
Recommendation age 6.4 yrs
Last formal update 391 days ago