No greater fire risk over HMOs, says Shropshire chief

Shropshire Assistant Chief Fire Officer Simon Hardiman told members of the brigade’s governing body that two people had died in house fires in the last year. One of the victims was a man living in a house in multiple occupation (HMO) in Oswestry.

Councillor Paul Milner, who represents the town’s southern ward, said the local authority was seeing “more and more planning applications for HMOs”, and asked whether such properties pose an extra fire risk.

Officer Hardiman said they do not “if managed appropriately”.

Shropshire and Wrekin Fire Authority’s standards, audit and performance committee was discussing a report co-authored by Mr Hardiman and Chief Fire Officer Rod Hammerton, summarising the brigade’s performance against 2019-20 service targets. These included keeping fire-related deaths and serious injuries down to 16 or fewer.

“The figure recorded was seven,” Mr Hardiman told the committee, adding that this included two deaths, both in accidental home fires.

“The first occurred in April 2019,” he said. “It involved a significant fire in a first-floor bedroom in the Little Dawley area of Telford, resulting in the death of a 36-year-old male.”

The report said Shropshire Fire and Rescue Service staff had visited the house in 2007 to carry out a “home safety visit”, but records only showed them meeting the landlord.

Officer Hardiman said: “The second fatality resulted from a fire within a semi-detached house of multiple occupancy, and that was in the Oswestry area. The individual was a 50-year-old male.”

Prevention team

The report said the man was known to other agencies, but the fire brigade had had “no prior involvement” with him.

The added: “Organisational learning has included identifying methods of obtaining access to information sets that currently fall outside of our data-sharing agreements with NHS England and NHS Improvement teams.

“The prevention team continue to work with partners to encourage referrals, thus providing an opportunity to impart fire safety information to households and occupants.”

Councillor Milner, who represents Oswestry South on Shropshire Council, asked Mr Hardiman: “What are your thoughts, in general, about HMOs. Do you think they’re more of a risk than normal dwellings?

“We’re having more and more planning applications for HMOs, so I just wanted to know what your thoughts are.”

Mr Hardiman said: “HMOs, if they are managed appropriately, do not pose any increased risk.”

But he said management of those properties should include installing and maintaining alarms and protection and having clear escape routes.

“It all makes a complete package to make sure HMOs are safe,” he said.

The 2004 Housing Act defines an HMO as privately-let property “not consisting of self-contained flats” inhabited by two or more separate households sharing some facilities, such as a bathroom or kitchen.

HMOs are required by law to have licenses from the council.