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NEBOSH Fire Safety study materials
NEBOSH Fire Safety study resources

NEBOSH Fire Safety: Fire risk assessment and control

NEBOSH Fire Safety · Work through your exam, one topic at a time.

All guide sections

Fire risk assessment and control

Fire risk assessment and control tests the five-step process used to identify fire hazards, decide who is at risk, evaluate and reduce risk, record and plan, and review. A suitable and sufficient assessment is site-specific and focuses on significant findings, not every trivial hazard. The fire triangle - fuel, oxygen and heat - plus the chemical chain reaction explains both prevention and control.

The five steps

  1. Identify hazards: ignition sources (electrical equipment, hot work, smoking), fuel (packaging, waste, flammable liquids), oxygen and oxidizing agents, and unsafe acts.
  2. Identify people at risk: employees, visitors, contractors, lone workers, disabled people, young or pregnant workers, and sleepers.
  3. Evaluate: estimate likelihood and severity, remove or reduce risk using the hierarchy - eliminate, substitute, engineering controls, safe systems, then PPE last.
  4. Record significant findings, the emergency plan, and information/instruction/training.
  5. Review after changes, incidents, near misses or new information.

Control principles

Separate ignition from fuel; substitute flammable substances; control quantities and storage; ventilate; maintain electrical and gas equipment; enforce housekeeping and waste removal; manage hot work and smoking; consider arson.

Worked example. A workshop stores 20 litres of petrol in a plastic can next to a bench grinder. Likelihood of ignition is high and severity is high. Remove the petrol if possible; if not, substitute a less flammable cleaner, store it in a fire-resistant cabinet, limit quantities, bond and earth dispensing, keep it away from the grinder, provide spill containment and ventilation, and train staff. Residual risk is lower but still requires review.

Traps. A list of hazards is not an assessment; you must evaluate and prioritise. Do not ignore visitors, contractors or disabled people. Do not copy a generic template without site detail. Do not rely on PPE or extinguishers as first-line control. Record and act on significant findings, and review after change.