The Fire Door Myth: Why Most Care Homes Get Fire Safety Backwards

Around 550 fires occur in care homes across the UK every year. Each one puts residents, staff, and reputations at risk. Most start with electrical faults or cooking incidents, but what turns a small fire into a serious one is often a mix of small oversights — poor compartmentation, outdated wiring, or alarms that fail when they are needed most.

Older buildings, higher risk

Many care homes were never built for today’s safety standards - three-quarters of homes occupy buildings more than 35 years old. Over time, extensions, room conversions, and general wear can leave gaps in fire-stopping and compromise escape routes. The CQC State of Care 2023/24 report highlights that ageing estates remain one of the biggest safety challenges, with some providers struggling to meet modern building and fire regulations.

Why focusing only on fire doors misses the point

As Darren Tubb, Senior Consultant at Inspectas, explains: “Compartmentation and fire doors should never be assessed in isolation; they are part of a far broader picture of the care home’s fire safety strategy.”

A new fire door will not perform if the wall around it is not fire-rated, the alarm is unreliable, or the wiring is past its best. Real compliance means checking how every system supports the rest. Alarms, extinguishers, electrical circuits, and evacuation routes must all work together under one plan.

The law backs this joined-up approach

The Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 and the Fire Safety (England) Regulations 2022 make the Responsible Person legally accountable for keeping fire precautions up to date. The Building Safety Act 2022 and BS 9991:2024 go further, requiring a single fire strategy that includes accurate drawings, regular testing, and evidence of maintenance.

The law no longer treats compliance as a list of separate jobs. It expects one coordinated approach linking systems, structure, and management.

How DJT delivers that compliance

DJT helps care providers meet these standards by managing electrical and fire safety as one connected process. Our teams carry out LED lighting upgrades, EICRs, fire alarm servicing, PAT testing, extinguisher maintenance, and fire door inspections, all planned within the same programme.

This joined-up approach gives care-home managers and estates teams clear visibility of risk, simplified reporting, and aligned inspection dates. Budgets can be directed to the highest-risk areas, and evidence of compliance is ready for CQC, insurers, or local fire authorities.

What good looks like

A strong fire-safety programme is easy to recognise when all the right parts connect. It should show clear evidence of planning, maintenance, and review based on one consistent strategy.

• A current fire strategy covering alarms, doors, wiring, and evacuation plans.

• Linked maintenance schedules for electrical and fire systems.

• Verified, dated inspection records in one place.

• Compartmentation and fire door checks carried out together.

• Annual reviews by qualified professionals.

Homes that follow this model reduce unplanned repairs, avoid enforcement notices, and build confidence with staff and families.

The outcome

When electrical and fire safety are managed together, compliance becomes predictable instead of reactive. Systems work in sequence, inspections run smoothly, and the environment stays safe for residents and staff. Fire doors matter, but only as part of the full picture.

If you want to make sure your fire safety systems work together as one, get in touch to arrange a full review.

Contact the team