BAFE, the fire safety register, and NAPIT, the National Association of Professional Inspectors and Testers, have announced the first ever Third-Party Certification and BAFE Registration to the DS301 competency scheme, which has been achieved by CS Electrics based in County Durham.

The competency scheme covers design, installation, commissioning, and maintenance works performed on Grade D domestic fire detection and fire alarm systems. Both BAFE and NAPIT have said they believe that all domestic properties should have, as a minimum, a Grade D fire detection and fire alarm system which has been installed by a competent organisation.

Dr Justin Maltby-Smith, BAFE Group Managing Director, commented: “It is imperative that both decision makers and the public understand that electricians cannot do everything regarding electrical systems by default.

“There are additional British Standards and guidance that outlines heightened competency requirements for particular electrical services, one of which is the safe practice of providing domestic fire alarm systems [i.e. BS 5839-6 Code of practice for the design, installation, commissioning and maintenance of fire detection and fire alarm systems in domestic premises].

“All four constituent countries of the UK have comparable fire safety dwelling regulations and guidance available, and we strongly believe that all dwellings should have systems in place in accordance with the relevant recommendations of BS 5839-6. This is especially pertinent to the housing sector which should have far greater scrutiny on this matter in the interest of life safety.”

Frank Bertie, Chief Technical Officer for NAPIT, added: “Whilst working to BS 7671 [Wiring Regulations] is vital, elevated skills and experience is unequivocally required to perform works for domestic fire safety systems. The importance of correctly designed, installed, and commissioned domestic fire detection and fire alarm works can often be overlooked.

“NAPIT are committed to enhancing standards within the industry. As a UKAS accredited, Government authorised Certification Body, by providing a scheme which assesses the competence of installers and allows them to demonstrate they have been appropriately certificated to perform this scope of work, we anticipate this will assist in a safer domestic built environment and provide confidence to clients.

“This is of particular importance with regards to new builds where domestic fire alarm systems must be installed in line with the Building Regulations and relevant British Standards.”

Christopher McTearnen, Owner of CS Electrics, said “I am extremely proud to be the first organisation that has received this third-party certification to the BAFE DS301 scheme. This will go a long way in demonstrating we are competent to deliver these works, and hope this becomes an industry standard to remove any people who claim to be competent without appropriate evidence of this. It’s so important that fire safety work is performed by the right providers to keep people safe.”