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Fire safety for resident directors

Residential personal emergency evacuation plans (PEEPs)

In this guide

Residential personal emergency evacuation plans (PEEPs) are plans for anyone living in the building who may need help to leave if there’s a fire, for example because of a mobility issue, a sight or hearing impairment, or a cognitive condition.

Which buildings are covered

Those with responsibility for building safety have new duties that have been introduced from 6 April 2026 in England, under the Fire Safety (Residential Evacuation Plans) (England) Regulations 2025. The rules do not apply in Wales.

The rules apply to all buildings in England containing flats that are:

  • at least 18 metres or at least 7 storeys
  • more than 11 metres and have simultaneous evacuation strategies (where residents need to leave the building if there’s a fire in another flat, rather than stay put)

Steps to follow

You must:

  1. try to identify all residents who may have difficulty evacuating the building without help
  2. offer them a “person-centred fire risk assessment” – a conversation with the person to understand their risks and what help they need if there’s a fire (it’s up to the resident if they want to participate)
  3. use the risk assessment to create an emergency evacuation statement setting out what they should do if there’s a fire
  4. share information with the fire and rescue authority (if the resident agrees)
  5. review the assessment at least once a year, or more often if necessary

There’s no requirement to use a specialist, but it might be best to use one. The work could be done either as part of the fire risk assessment, or separately.

The regulations also require you to prepare an evacuation plan for the building, and provide a copy to the local fire and rescue authority. It must include information on whether there are any residents who need help to evacuate.

Paying for new measures

The risk assessment might identify changes to the building or new equipment that will help the person to evacuate. You must implement these changes if they are “reasonable and proportionate” for the building and if the costs can be paid by the resident, or shared by all the building residents. Any charging arrangements should be checked against the lease.

Usually, the resident will need to pay for these measures themselves, if they agree. That will depend on the lease and the type of measures.

The cost can only be charged to all leaseholders through the service charge if it will benefit most leaseholders (not just the resident who needs help), and if the leases allow.

Find out more

Last updated:
2 April 2026
Next review:
2 April 2028

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