Housing associations, managing agents and inspection companies working in London run fire alarm programmes under England's regulatory framework. Here's what applies, how often it's due, and how local providers manage it with Kaarr.
The maintenance duty flows from the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005; BS 5839-1 (communal/commercial) and BS 5839-6 (dwellings) define system grades, categories and the testing regime. Smoke and carbon monoxide alarm requirements in individual homes are set by the Smoke and Carbon Monoxide Alarm (Amendment) Regulations 2022.
London has 33 local authorities (32 boroughs plus the City of London), and each enforces housing standards, HMO licensing and any additional or selective licensing on its own terms. Schemes differ borough by borough, and a few cover the whole borough, so a London portfolio often answers to several regimes at once.
The London Fire Brigade is the fire and rescue authority and enforces the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 across the capital.
Stock ranges from Victorian and Edwardian conversions to 1960s-70s estates and a large number of high-rise blocks. Buildings of 18 metres or seven storeys and above fall within the Building Safety Act 2022 higher-risk regime, which adds duties on top of the routine inspection cycle.
London Fire Brigade changed how it responds to automatic fire alarms on 29 October 2024, and the change favours residential blocks. It stopped attending automatic alarms in most non-residential buildings between 7am and 8:30pm unless someone calls to report a fire, but it continues to attend alarms at residential buildings, along with schools, nurseries, hospitals and care homes. It still attends all automatic alarms outside those hours. LFB reported that between April 2023 and March 2024 it attended about 52,000 false alarms from automatic systems, and said fewer than one per cent of automatic alarm signals are genuine fires. Confirm the brigade's current policy.
The workflow, report template and scheduling for fire alarm are the same in every city. See how Kaarr runs fire alarm, then book a demo with your London stock in mind.
London is in England, so the governing framework is: Fire Safety Order 2005 · BS 5839-1 & BS 5839-6. The maintenance duty flows from the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005; BS 5839-1 (communal/commercial) and BS 5839-6 (dwellings) define system grades, categories and the testing regime. Smoke and carbon monoxide alarm requirements in individual homes are set by the Smoke and Carbon Monoxide Alarm (Amendment) Regulations 2022.
BS 5839-1 expects a weekly user test of communal systems and periodic servicing by a competent firm — normally every six months. Domestic (in-flat) systems follow BS 5839-6. Kaarr runs both schedules.
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