Sir Gavin Williamson visited the new UK Fire Door Training Centre on the Four Ashes estate.
Sir Gavin met with the CEO of the organisation, Andy Millard, as well as the Head of Training, Kyle Cowie. He was given a tour of the new facilities and took part in his own fire door safety inspection.
Representatives of the company were keen to raise concerns about fire door maintenance, as there is a lack of regulation and consistency across the fire door industry. Three million fire doors are installed in the UK each year, yet the multiple bodies responsible for regulation often don’t agree on the standards required at inspection. This has raised concerns that many fire doors will not be as effective in the event of a fire.
Head of Training, Kyle Cowie, said: “We are now ready to train anyone who wants to learn about fire safety and the importance of installing fire doors. It was great to have Sir Gavin down and he really got involved. He did a practical safety inspection and spotted some faults which was great. We mostly train carpenters, but anyone with an interest can apply.”
Sir Gavin said: “It was fantastic to meet with Kyle and Andy to talk about how we can best support the fire door industry in the UK. Fire doors can halt the progression of a fire for 30 to 60 minutes, and this can be enough time for emergency services to step in and prevent serious destruction. It is of critical importance that fire doors are as effective as possible, and I will do what I can in Parliament to push for better regulations to be put in place.”
