Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974

78 Amendment of Fire Precautions Act 1971

(1) The [1971 c. 40.] Fire Precautions Act 1971 shall be amended in accordance with the following provisions of this section.

(2) In section 1(2) (power to designate uses of premises for which fire certificate is compulsory) at the end there shall be inserted as paragraph if)—

“(f) use as a place of work.”

(3) In section 2 (premises exempt from section 1), paragraphs (a) to (c) (which exempt certain premises covered by the [1963 c. 41.] Offices, Shops and Railway Premises Act 1963, the [1961 c. 34.] Factories Act 1961 or the [1954 c. 70.] Mines and Quarries Act 1954) shall cease to have effect.

(4) After section 9 there shall be inserted as section 9A—

“9A Duty to provide certain premises with means of escape in case of fire.

(1) All premises to which this section applies shall be provided with such means of escape in case of fire for the persons employed to work therein as may reasonably be required in the circumstances of the case.

(2) The premises to which this section applies are—

(a) office premises, shop premises and railway premises to which the Offices, Shops and Railway Premises Act 1963 applies; and

(b) premises which are deemed to be such premises for the purposes of that Act,

being (in each case) premises in which persons are employed to work.

(3) In determining, for the purposes of this section, what means of escape may reasonably be required in the case of any premises, regard shall be had (amongst other things) not only to the number of persons who may be expected to be working in the premises at any time but also to the number of persons (other than those employed to work therein) who may reasonably be expected to be resorting to the premises at that time.

(4) In the event of a contravention of subsection (1) above the occupier of the premises shall be guilty of an offence and liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding £400.”

(5) In section 12(1) (power to make regulations about fire precautions as regards certain premises), at the end there shall be added the words " and nothing in this section shall confer on the Secretary of State power to make provision with respect to the taking or observance of special precautions in connection with the carrying on of any manufacturing process.

(6) In section 17 (duty of fire authorities to consult other authorities before requiring alterations to buildings)—

(a) in subsection (1), the word " and" shall be omitted where last occurring in paragraph (i) and shall be added at the end of paragraph (ii), and after paragraph

(ii) there shall be added as paragraph (iii)—

“(iii) if the premises are used as a place of work and are within the field of responsibility of one or more enforcing authorities within the meaning of Part I of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974, consult that authority or each of those authorities.”;

(b) in subsection (2) (clarification of references in section 9 to persons aggrieved), for the words " or buildings authority" there shall be substituted the words " buildings authority or other authority ";

(c) after subsection (2) there shall be added as subsection (3)—

“(3) Section 18(7) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 (meaning in Part I of that Act of ' enforcing authority' and of such an authority's ' field of responsibility ') shall apply for the purposes of this section as it applies for the purposes of that Part.”

(7) In section 18 (enforcement of Act)—

(a) for the word " it" there shall be substituted the words " (1) Subject to subsection (2) below, it ";

(b) for the word "section" there shall be substituted the word " subsection "; and

(c) after the word " offence " there shall be added as subsection (2)—

“(2) A fire authority shall have power to arrange with the Health and Safety Commission for such of the authority's functions under this Act as may be specified in the arrangements to be performed on their behalf by the Health and Safety Executive (with or without payment) in relation to any particular premises so specified which are used as a place of work.”

(8) In section 40 (application to Crown etc.)—

(a) in subsection (1)(a) (provisions which apply to premises occupied by the Crown), after the word " 6 " there shall be inserted the words " , 9A (except subsection (4)) ";

(b) in subsection (1)(b) (provisions which apply to premises owned, but not occupied by, the Crown), after the word " 8 " there shall be inserted the word " 9A ";

(c) in subsection (10) (application of Act to hospital premises in Scotland), for the words from " Regional " to " hospitals" there shall be substituted the words " Health Board ";

(d) after subsection (10) there shall be inserted the following subsection—

“(10A) This Act shall apply to premises in England occupied by a Board of Governors of a teaching hospital (being a body for the time being specified in an order under section 15(1) of the [1973 c. 12.] National Health Service Reorganisation Act 1973) as if they were premises occupied by the Crown.”.

(9) In section 43(1) (interpretation) there shall be added at the end the following definition—

• “" work " has the same meaning as it has for the purposes of Part I of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974”.

(10) Schedule 8 (transitional provisions with respect to fire certificates under the [1961 c. 34.] Factories Act 1961 or the [1963 c. 41.] Offices, Shops and Railway Premises Act 1963) shall have effect.