Fire evacuation procedures for schools

To comply with fire regulations, your school must have fire evacuation procedures in place.

Fire regulations your school must meet

Your school must meet the requirements of the Fire and Emergency New Zealand (Fire Safety, Evacuation Procedures, and Evacuation Schemes) Regulations 2018.

All schools must have fire evacuation procedures to comply with Part 1 of the regulations.

Many schools will also need to have a fire evacuation scheme to ensure they comply with Part 2 of the regulations.

Fire and Emergency New Zealand (Fire Safety, Evacuation Procedures, and Evacuation Schemes) Regulations 2018 – New Zealand Legislationopen_in_new

Fire evacuation procedures – Part 1 of the fire regulations

Evacuation procedures outline how the occupants of a building will be evacuated safely, promptly and efficiently. Some schools call this an evacuation plan.

You don’t need to get your evacuation procedures approved by Fire and Emergency New Zealand (FENZ). However, they may ask you to provide evidence that you have these procedures in place for your school.

The safe evacuation of people with disabilities to a safe place outside is a critical requirement. You must have an evacuation procedure in place that allows all occupants (including those with disabilities requiring particular assistance) to be able to evacuate to a place of safety when the fire alarm sounds, and in the case of a fire.

Keep your school's means of escape – such as exit doors, hallways and stairs – clear of all obstacles at all times. These areas must not be used to store items, waste or rubbish.

Flammable materials must not be stored along means of escape or fire egress ways. They should also be stored in secure containers with close fitting lids.

Exit doors must be unlocked and free of barriers so they can be used for quick and safe evacuation at all times.

Smoke control and fire doors must be kept closed unless they’re kept open in a way that complies with the building code. Doors that are held open and automatically close when the fire alarm sounds are acceptable. Door wedges that must be manually removed are not acceptable.

The evacuation procedure must be summarised on clear, distinct and legible signs that meet the requirements of the regulations.

The signs must outline the route of travel to safe places. In a small building the signs might be standard throughout. In larger buildings or school blocks the content of each sign should be tailored to the location of the sign.

Signs must also state:

  • a description of the fire alarm signals/method of alerting people to a fire
  • any firefighting equipment available, if it’s installed
  • provisions for any people who require assistance to evacuate
  • how to alert FENZ.

All occupants of the building must:

  • be informed of the evacuation procedure
  • follow the evacuation procedure in the case of fire or when alerted to a fire, for example if the fire alarm sounds.

A sufficient number of your school employees must be trained to effectively manage the evacuation of all occupants of the school, including those with disabilities.

Your school must take reasonable precautions to prevent a fire. This means:

  • electrical, gas or flammable liquid powered appliances and their fuel/energy sources must be properly constructed, maintained, secured and protected in a manner to prevent a fire starting
  • a fire cannot be lit within a building unless it’s in a properly constructed fireplace with a properly constructed chimney.

Goods in flammable packaging must be packed or unpacked in areas away from:

  • the general public
  • any lighting or heating devices
  • areas directly connected to stairways, lifts or other openings between floors not protected from the spread of fire.

A building or part of a building primarily used to store flammable materials must be appropriately located so that any fire cannot spread to the rest of the building.

Flammable materials (including waste) must not be stored outside a building in a way that creates a fire hazard.

Any handheld firefighting equipment that is installed must be maintained in accordance with New Zealand Standard (NZS) 4503:2005.

For state schools the building warrant of fitness (BWOF) provider – Argest Technical Services – will identify if this is not the case.

School building warrant of fitness

Fire evacuation scheme – Part 2 of the fire regulations

Your school must comply with Part 2 of the regulations if you:

  • have 100 or more students
  • have 10 or more staff
  • provide sleeping accommodation for more than five people
  • store hazardous substances in quantities exceeding the prescribed minimum amounts, such as pool chemicals
  • have an early learning and care service. A fully detached early learning service with its own alarm system (not integrated with your school's alarm system) needs to have a separate evacuation scheme.

To ensure compliance with Part 2, your school must have an evacuation scheme approved by FENZ.

Information for schools – Argest NZopen_in_new

You can apply for approval of your evacuation scheme on the FENZ website. They have an example application form and evacuation scheme for a school available to provide guidance on how to fill in your application – but if you need help with it, contact your local FENZ office.

Evacuation schemes – FENZopen_in_new

How to develop a fire evacuation scheme

We require all state schools to have a compliant evacuation scheme, even if you have fire sprinklers in your buildings. New schools that meet the requirements for an evacuation scheme must have this in place before opening.

Your school should carefully consider how you’ll effectively manage an evacuation in a fire emergency. This includes setting out specific details for evacuating people with disabilities.

An evacuation scheme must include information about:

  • what to do if you discover a fire
  • what to do if you’re alerted to a fire
  • where your assembly points are and how to get to them
  • how you’ll evacuate members of the public who may be at your school, including young children, the elderly, the sick, people with disabilities, and residential units.

Getting your evacuation scheme approved

You need to apply to get your evacuation scheme approved by FENZ. To make an application you’ll need:

  • your proposed evacuation scheme
  • copies of your emergency signs and notices
  • a list of hazardous chemicals your school stores (science lab or pool chemicals)
  • building occupancy numbers – contact Argest if you need these.
info

You need a RealMe account to apply through the FENZ website. If you don’t have an account already, you can set up one in your school's name. When you enter the name of your school in the form, put the prefix "MOE" in front of your school's name, for example 'MOE-Kiwi Park School'.

Keeping your evacuation scheme up to date

To keep your evacuation scheme up to date, you must:

  • keep the contact person details FENZ holds for your school up-to-date
  • hold trial evacuations every 6 months
  • train staff to manage an evacuation and assess their preparedness every 6 months
  • advise FENZ of the outcome of your trial evacuations.

In some circumstances, you’ll need to update the evacuation scheme and resubmit it for approval. This can happen when:

  • there’s a significant increase in the school's roll
  • new buildings or renovations change the school’s total occupancy
  • there are changes to fire systems or egress routes.

The regulations set out the changes in circumstances that may require an evacuation scheme to be resubmitted for approval by FENZ.

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