Frequently Asked Questions

We have compiled a list of frequently asked questions to provide further detail and to help you decide if this course is right for you.

Please click on the link below.

Frequently Asked Questions

If you still have questions please contact the office on 01252 792 088

Surrey

31 March to 4 April 2025

23 June to 27 June 2025

Venue Details

De Vere Horsley Park

Ockham Road South, East Horsley, Surrey KT24 6DT

Telephone: 01483 917 075

Website: https://www.devere.co.uk/horsley-estate

Edinburgh

15 September to 19 September 2025

Venue Details

Radisson Blu Hotel

80 High Street, The Royal Mile, Edinburgh EH1 1TH

Tel: 0131 557 9797

Website: Radisson Hotels, Edinburgh

Fire risk assessment is fundamental to fire safety law.  Employers and any other person who has control over premises must take measures to reduce the risk from fire and make sure people can escape safely.  To this end, the legislation requires that a fire risk assessment be carried out.

This comprehensive course is designed to enable persons to develop their fire safety principles, and practise application of their skills in conducting or auditing fire risk assessments.  As part of the course, delegates undertake a practical workshop exercise, and their understanding is tested by written assessment on the final day.

Please be advised that there are two routes to consider for this course, as follows:

1. To achieve the Level 2 qualification (Level 5 in Scotland), you will be required to attend the course and complete an assessment. After the course has finished, you will be asked to produce a portfolio of evidence and undertake a professional interview.
2. You may wish to attend the course as a standalone option only, to gain CPD hours and a certificate for passing the assessment. This option does not provide a qualification.

Please note that, once confirmed, bookings to undertake the qualification cannot be amended to standalone courses.  However, standalone course bookings can be upgraded to include the qualification.

Learning Outcomes

Delegates will develop:

• An awareness of relevant fire safety legislation
• An understanding of the principles, and scope of fire risk assessments
• An understanding of hazard and risk
• A basic understanding of means of escape and fire protection measures
• A pragmatic approach that can be adopted towards the assessment of fire prevention, fire protection and management of fire safety

The fire risk assessment course is designed to provide delegates with an understanding of the principles of fire risk assessment.  Although the principles of fire risk assessment do not change, the time constraints on the course are such that it is often not possible to cover all types of premises in detail.

Who should attend and key benefits

This course is for individuals wishing to gain the necessary knowledge and skills to undertake fire risk assessments and develop competence in this area.  Progression through all three levels (low-risk premises, medium risk premises and high risk premises) is encouraged, to ensure that full coverage of knowledge and skills are gained.  Knowledge and skills are then put into practice by carrying out fire risk assessments for a set period at each level (between six and 24 months).  Individuals who are new entrants to the industry will only be able to undertake the low-risk premises course (Level 2 in England and Wales or Level 5 in Scotland).

Course Entry Criteria

Fire Risk Assessments in Low-Risk Premises – No previous fire risk assessment experience required.

Delegates who wish to go on the Medium or High Risk Premises courses should have attended the FireQual Fire Risk Assessment in Low-Risk Premises Course (or an equivalent Fire Risk Assessment/Fire Safety qualification) and have been carrying out fire risk assessments in the workplace for qualifying periods.

How is the course assessed and accredited?

The course is assessed against sets of learning outcomes, in the form of five days in-person training, written knowledge assessments, and completion of two fire risk assessments at the appropriate level.  The final step is to undergo a professional interview with our trainers via Microsoft Teams.

Upon successful completion of this course, you will be awarded the certification below:

FireQual Award in Fire Risk Assessment in Low-Risk Premises

Regulated Qualification Framework (RQF) England & Wales Level 2

or

Scottish Credit & Qualifications Framework (SCQF) Level 5

If you are successful in achieving the pass marks for the Level 2/5 Award in Fire Risk Assessments in Low-Risk Premises, you will receive a qualification certificate from our third‑party accrediting body.  However, while this meets the ‘best practice’ qualification level and the knowledge/skills for undertaking low-risk fire risk assessments, you should make sure that you are competent to address all of the fire risks within any of the premises you are assessing.

Both qualifications, whether RQF or SCQF, are valid throughout the UK.  If you work in Northern Ireland, the Scottish course should be selected, due to similarities in legislation.  The course will consist of Scottish course notes, but you can select to undertake the Northern Ireland assessment.

How will I complete this qualification?

Once you have attended the course and successfully passed the assessment, you will be required to submit a portfolio of evidence containing one reflective learning document and two redacted fire risk assessment reports.  The final step is to undergo a professional interview with our trainers via Microsoft Teams.

In-person learning (Classroom)

Our five days in-person training course will teach you the knowledge and skills required to undertake fire risk assessments.  This is followed up by the submission of a portfolio of evidence.

Remote learning

There are no remote learning options for these courses at present.

Assessment

Your assessment will be based on the legislation relevant to the location of your training e.g. England and Wales for the Surrey courses and Scotland for the Edinburgh course.  If you wish to sit a different examination, this must be specified on the booking form.

The handwritten assessment on the final day is an open book assessment, supervised by an invigilator.  The purpose of this is to assess your understanding and knowledge, not recall.  If you have any special requirements for completing the assessment, please ensure this is specified on the booking form.

The use of mobile phones or electronic devices is prohibited during the assessment.

Food

Lunch and refreshments will be provided throughout the week.  On the final day, a working lunch will be held in the conference room.  The hotel also has a bar and restaurant which delegates can use at their own expense.

Dress code

Smart casual.  There is a practical exercise on Thursday, so comfortable shoes are advised.  The exercise requires physical capability and use of staircases.  If you have any concerns regarding this, they must be discussed in advance of the course.

Use of mobile phones

We understand that delegates may need to be contacted during the course.  Mobile phones should be set to silent.  The use of mobile phones or electronic devices is prohibited during the assessment.

Professional Interview

The professional interview with our trainers will be undertaken via Microsoft Teams and will last a maximum of two hours.  Please note, all interviews are recorded and transcribed.  The aim of the interview is to assess your overall concepts of legal, regulatory and enforcement practices, as well as the methods and practices to undertake a fire risk assessment within a low-risk building.  The discussions during this process will be based upon the learning outcomes of the in-person training, your assessment, the reflective learning document and the two completed (and redacted) fire risk assessments.

Trainers:

Our courses are delivered by a mixture of experienced trainers, all of whom are practising fire risk assessors, who understand the practicalities of working in the field.

Costs:

Qualification:

£1,995 plus VAT per delegate – to be prepaid by cheque, BACS or debit/credit card excluding Amex.

Included in the cost:

• One set of course notes in England and Wales legislation for Surrey courses and Scotland legislation for the Edinburgh course
• In person training over five days including a practical workshop exercise and assessment
• CPD certificate issued for those passing the course
• Tea, coffee and lunch will be provided on all five days
• One-to-one mentoring via Microsoft Teams or telephone, whichever is the preferred platform, for any delegate who is not successful in the assessment
• An opportunity to re-sit a fresh assessment paper within one year of the original assessment date
• Registration with FireQual, the awarding body
• Review of reflective learning document and two completed fire risk assessments (these must be submitted within two years of training course)
• Professional interview with the trainers after review of the portfolio of work
• RQF Level 2 or SQA Level 5 certificate on successful completion

Standalone course:

£1,400 plus VAT per delegate – to be prepaid by cheque, BACS or debit/credit card excluding Amex.

Included in the cost:

• One set of course notes in England and Wales legislation for Surrey courses and Scotland legislation for the Edinburgh course
• In person training over five days including a practical workshop exercise and assessment
• CPD certificate issued for those passing the course
• Tea, coffee and lunch will be provided on all five days
• One-to-one mentoring via Microsoft Teams or telephone, whichever is the preferred platform, for any delegate who is not successful in the assessment
• An opportunity to re-sit a fresh assessment paper within one year of the original assessment date

Accommodation:

Please note that accommodation is not included on either course.
Accommodation may be possible at the host hotel, depending on availability and there are also a number of hotels nearby. All accommodations are the responsibility of the attendees and made at their own expense.

Special requirements:

The written assessment on the final day is an open book assessment, supervised by an invigilator.  It is to test understanding and knowledge, not recall.  It requires completion of a paper by hand and can involve a significant amount of writing.  If you have any special requirements for the assessment, please ensure that this is specified on the booking form.

Assessment referral:

If you do not pass the assessment section of the course, we offer the option of a remote mentoring session with one of our trainers, followed by re-sitting the assessment.  Any mentoring sessions and assessment re-sits must occur within one calendar year of the original assessment date.  The re-sitting can be completed in your workplace, but it must be invigilated by a manager or member of human resources.  If you work alone, there is the option of attending the assessment day of another public course, but this will incur a charge due to the venue costs.

Prerequisites:

There are no prerequisites for this course.  However, we do recommend the following pre-course background reading.  These are the Government guides to fire safety legislation as listed below:

For England and Wales:

• Fire safety risk assessment: sleeping accommodation
• Fire safety risk assessment: offices and shops
• Fire safety risk assessment: means of escape for disabled people
• A guide to making your small blocks of flats safe from fire
• A guide to making your small non-domestic premises safe from fire
• A guide to making your small paying-guest-accommodation safe from fire

For Scotland:

• Practical fire safety guidance for existing premises with sleeping accommodation
• Practical fire safety guidance for existing non-residential premises
• Practical guidance for the emergency evacuation of disabled people

For Northern Ireland:

• Fire safety risk assessment: sleeping accommodation
• Fire safety risk assessment: offices and shops
• Fire safety risk assessment: means of escape for disabled people

The above Guides are available to download for free on the Resources and Research section on our website which is accessible via the below link.

(Guides and Useful Information – C. S. Todd & Associates).

TERMS AND CONDITIONS

1. We have limited places on each course. Therefore, confirmed bookings will be made upon receipt of payment on a first come, first served basis.
2. In order to book a place, please complete the attached booking form and return with payment in full. On receipt of payment, confirmation of your booking will be sent to you.
3. When booking, you must specify if you are undertaking the qualification or if you are attending the training as a standalone course.
4. Bookings to undertake the qualification cannot be amended to standalone courses once we have received payment.
5. If you book onto the standalone course and later decide to amend this to the qualification, the additional costs and requirements will reflect the situation at the time of making the change. Please note, any request to change to the qualification, rather than standalone course, must be received no later than 14 days before the in-person training commences.
6. Cancellations within 28 days of the course commencing are non-refundable.
7. Cancellations before 28 days of the course commencing can be refunded. Alternatively, provided we have availability, your place can be transferred to another course (you may incur additional costs if the course transferred to takes place in a different calendar year).
8. If you have booked to undertake our qualification, refunds issued before 28 days of the course commencing will be subject to a £50 administration fee.
9. It is essential when completing the booking form that delegate names are spelt correctly. If an incorrect name is provided and you are undertaking the qualification, FireQual will charge for a name correction. This cost will be chargeable in addition to the course cost.
10. The written assessment result is an overall pass or referral (detailed marking will not be disclosed). If you are following the qualification route, any individual learning outcome/assessment criteria requirements that are not achieved will be assessed as part of the professional discussion.
11. Mentoring sessions and re-sits must occur within one calendar year of the original assessment date.