Fire Door Safety Week: a fire door only works shut

Fire Door Safety Week runs from 21 to 25 September 2026. The British Woodworking Federation has run it since 2013, and this year’s theme is Check it, close it: protection starts at the door. It is a good week to walk your building and look at every fire door, because a fire door only does its job shut.

The BWF’s 2026 survey shows why the campaign still needs running. 38% of people aged 18 to 29 said they feel safe when a fire door is wedged open, and 21% of people aged 30 to 45 believe a fire door is simply a door painted red. Among the oldest respondents, three in ten would not know who to contact about a faulty door. A door that is propped open, missing its closer or hanging on a broken hinge holds back neither smoke nor fire, and the people walking past it often do not know that.

What the law expects of you

Under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005, the responsible person for any non-domestic premises in England and Wales has to keep the fire precautions in the building, fire doors included, in an efficient state, in efficient working order and in good repair. The same Order requires every employee to receive fire safety training when they start and whenever the risks change.

Residential buildings carry an extra duty. Since 23 January 2023, under the Fire Safety (England) Regulations 2022, the responsible person for any block of flats with communal areas must tell residents to keep fire doors shut, to leave self-closers alone and to report damage straight away. Where the top storey is above 11 metres, they must also check the fire doors in communal areas at least every three months, and use their best endeavours to check every flat entrance door at least every twelve months.

What the figures say

Fire and rescue services in England attended 170,597 fires in the year to March 2026, 19% more than the year before. 13,679 of them were in buildings other than homes, 3.7% more than the year before but 15% fewer than ten years ago. More people were hurt too: 991 were injured in other building fires, 7.7% more than the previous year, and 17 died, up from 14. A working fire door is the difference between a fire in one room and a fire on one floor.

The five things to check on every door

The campaign’s own check takes a minute a door. Look for the certification label or plug on the top edge of the door, or occasionally on the side. Check the gaps: consistently under 4mm at the sides and top when the door is closed (a pound coin is about 3mm), and up to 8mm under the door; if you can see light under it, the gap is too big. Check the intumescent seals around the door or frame are intact. Check there are three or more hinges with no screws missing. Check the door closes firmly onto its latch by itself, and that nothing is holding it open.

The training that covers it

Fire Awareness Training is for everyone: how fire starts and spreads, signs and signboards, prevention, equipment and evacuation. Approx. 30 minutes, IOSH approved and CPD accredited.

Fire Warden Training is for the people you nominate: the same ground plus a warden’s responsibilities on the day, including the sweep of the building that finds the wedged door. Approx. 50 minutes, IOSH approved and CPD accredited.

Fire Extinguisher Training is an approx. 10 minute CPD accredited refresher for anyone who might have to pick one up.

Every course issues its certificate the moment the learner finishes, and every record sits in one place in The Globe, so when the fire risk assessor or the insurer asks who has been trained, the answer is on screen rather than in a drawer. Book a demo and we will show you where every certificate in the business is held.