Professional programme confirmed for the Fire Safety Event Leaders Summit

Fire Safety Event confirms Leaders Summit programme

The Fire Safety Leaders Summit will deliver CPD-accredited content focused on competence, compliance and operational challenges at the NEC Birmingham from 28 to 30 April 2026.

Organisers confirmed the full programme of sessions addressing regulatory change and workforce development ahead of The Fire Safety Event (FSE).

The summit is sponsored by RiskBase and features speakers from the Institution of Fire Engineers (IFE), Ventro and the Institute of Fire Safety Managers (IFSM).

Sessions provide applied insight into current requirements including updates to legislation and examples of how organisations manage compliance in operational settings.

On 28 April at 10:30, Beyond Qualifications: What Competence Looks Like in Fire Safety in Practice will examine the role of behaviour and accountability.

Speakers for this opening session include Gavin Skelly, Founder at Fire Aware, and Angela Bennett, CEO at Diamond Systems.

Tom Brookes, Managing Director at Zzeus Ltd, and Daren Pool, Managing Director at Triple Star Fire & Security and Chairman of the Fire & Security Association, will also contribute.

At 11:30, Adam Sanders, Technical Director at RiskBase, will cover data collection and maintaining compliance regarding Residential Personal Emergency Evacuation Plans (RPEEPs).

John Field, Chair of the IOSH Fire Risk Management Community and Fire Safety Manager at DNATA Catering UK, will lead a 12:30 session on personal liability.

At 13:15, Keith Todd, Partner at Ridge and Partners LLP, will identify recurring issues in risk assessments and engineering submissions based on industry review experience.

Lucy Macleod, Borough Commander at London Fire Brigade, and Vicki Swaine, Health and Safety Director at 3Safety, will examine workforce representation at 14:00.

Alina Scarlat, Director at Magnus Opifex Seven, joins the leadership session to discuss culture and retention strategies.

Matthew Spivey, Vice Chairman of IFSM, will chair a 15:00 assessment of entry pathways and training barriers with Cameron Chadwick, Amelia Topley and Liam Morgan.

Technical standards and multidisciplinary collaboration

The second day of the summit begins with an overview of evolving competence frameworks presented by Ian Moore, Chief Executive Officer of the Fire Industry Association (FIA).

Tina Mistry will chair a 11:10 session on multidisciplinary collaboration in housing projects featuring speakers from Women Talking Fire.

Speakers Rosie Sonnenschein, Julia Bariotakis and Amy Cooper will examine coordination across housing safety roles.

At 12:00, Adam Sanders, James Cannon and Tom Simmonds will focus on integrating fire safety data with wider building systems to support decision-making.

Agnieszka Melling-Sawicka, Simon Ince and Richard Glover will address modern methods of construction (MMC) and the application of PAS 8700 at 12:55.

Findings from the Fire Safety Buyers Report 2026 will be presented at 13:30 by Alaster Purchase and Ken Bullock.

This research, commissioned by the National Security Inspectorate (NSI) and BAFE, examines how duty holders select fire safety providers.

A 14:30 session featuring Colin Whalley, Vanessa Brandham, John Bellis and Nick Coombe will examine implementation challenges under new evacuation planning regulations.

The day concludes at 15:30 with an outline of career pathways and apprenticeships followed by a networking opportunity.

Smarter systems and residential safety risks

The final day of the summit includes an analysis of fire door standards led by Peter Ashworth, Sarah Lewis, Terry James and Rob Pace at 13:10.

This session will outline updates to BS 8214:2026 and their specific implications for specification, installation and maintenance.

Gareth Butler will chair a 10:30 examination of connected fire detection systems with Andy Speake, Will Lloyd, Martin Simmonds and Kevin Dodd.

At 11:25, Adam Sanders and Peter Thomas will analyse prosecution cases and evidential challenges faced by fire risk assessors.

Nicola Roberts will chair a review of Gateway submission requirements and common reasons for rejection at 12:20.

Speakers Maz Ruth, Sally Friswell and Nikki Barrow will discuss the role of digital tools in achieving Gateway compliance.

At 13:50, Steven Wilson will address passive fire protection developments and the use of digital systems such as Building Information Modelling (BIM).

Jan Taranczuk will chair a 14:30 session on managing lithium-ion battery safety in homes with Andrew Frankum and Matt Humby.

This discussion will examine fire risks including thermal runaway and safe storage practices for residential settings.

The summit sessions take place throughout the duration of the event at the NEC.