Front Door Leaseholder Guidance

What is a Fire Certificate

A Fire Certified door provides evidence to prove that it is a fire door and be tested to an appropriate British or European standard by a third party accreditation scheme. This evidence is usually in the form of a certificate of performance. A fire door must be tested by an independent test organisation in accordance to British or European Standards. If the door is Installed and maintained correctly, it will perform in the event of a fire. The best way to prove to your customer that you have supplied a fire door is by a current fire certificate, proving that testing is relevant to the supplied product and has been done by an independent accredited third party.

How can I check if my door meets the current standards?

Manufacturers can certify fire doorsets, both for identification purposes and to guarantee their performance in a fire situation. Once tested by an approved fire testing centre and, passed, any doorsets constructed to that specification can be considered for certification.

Once the certification is approved, each similarly constructed doorset will be identified by a label identifying the manufacturer, the date of manufacture and the designated fire rating of the door type. This identification label is usually affixed to the top edge of the door. A colour-coded plug may be inserted into the door, instead of or in addition to the label.

There are two associations that have certifiable fire door systems:

1. Look for a coloured plug in the door itself or any label or markings which may indicate the door has been certified by either TRAD A's Q-Mark Scheme or BWF's Certifire scheme (British Woodworking Federation). On occasions it may difficult to locate a fire certificate or identification marks as door can be made from Wood; GRP (Glass Reinforced Plastic); Composite and UPVC (Unplasticised polyvinyl chloride) (Non fire doors) but there are a number of ways to confirm that the dorset can hold back a fire for a specified period of time.
2. Tap/ knock your door, does it sound hollow? Look inside your letterbox, does the door sound hollow? Hollow flush doors using egg box or similar construction will provide adequate fire protection. The weight of the door can be used because fire doors are much heavier than a hollow door. To check the weight of a door, instead of removing it, you can detach the self closer and swing the door between your thumb and index finger. This gives a good indication of the weight of the door. Hollow doors are reasonably easy to detect using this method.
3. Measure the width of the door (the thin edge) - Panel Fire doors must be a minimum of 44mm (4.4cm) in thickness. If your door has panelled sections and the thickness of these panels is less than 44 mm in thicknesses (i.e. they are thinner than the surrounding parts of the door) it is unlikely that your door is a fire door.
4. Check if there are three hinges fitted, which bear the CE mark . Because of the weight of a fire door and to prevent it warping, fire doors are usually fitted with three fire door hinges.

5. If your door has a glazed panel(s) within it, the glass should either be Georgian wired or have a special fire resistant glazing fitted (this will be indicated by an etched mark '8S476:22'). If the glazing does not have either, it's unlikely that the door is a fire door.

6. Is there a 25mm door stop fitted around the door frame which the door closes too? Or is an intumescent or smoke seal (or a combination) fitted? 

7. Is the door self-closing? i.e. when you let it go, it will shut itself. Fire doors are required to be fitted with either an overhead door closer or a jamb closer.
   If your door meets all of the above criteria it is likely that it meets the standard and will perform effectively in a fire.

8. UPVC doors are not currently accepted as fire doors, though such doors may be classed as "Nominal Fire Doors" as the doorsets are not certified but in the opinion of a "competent" assessor will hold back a fire for a specified period of time. Identifying nominal fire doors can be very difficult.

Followed above steps and still difficult to identify?

If you have followed the above step and are experiencing difficulties confirming the doorset as fire rated then take three pictures of the doorset:

1. Along the longest edge where the hinges are located, showing the whole edge along it's length;

2. Along the length of the top edge of the door and;
3. The whole of the front face of the door.

Email each picture to home.ownership@redbridge.gov.uk together with the postal address for your property and a contact number.

Can I upgrade my current door rather than replace it to meet the standard?

This will depend on the construction of the door, if a door isn't of solid construction; of the correct thickness or fitted with the correct glazing, it won't be possible to upgrade it.

In some cases the door itself may be adequate and only minor improvements such as changing ironmongery or fitting a self-closing device may be required. Please contact us if you are unsure and would like further assistance and advice or would like to have your door assessed.

Contact the Redbridge Council Project Manager (Fire Safety) at:

• home.ownership@redbridge.gov.uk
• T: 020 8708 7606

Where upgrading of an existing door is undertaken, a valid fire test report or assessment report by a suitably qualified person must be provided by the lessee on completion of works. Where this is not provided, building control and London Borough of Red bridge will not be able to accept the door and may require that it is replaced with a new doorset.

I want to replace my front door what standard do I need to achieve?

All new fire door sets to flats are to be to FD30s standard in accordance with BS476: Part 22 1987 or BS EN 1634-1 2000. We also recommend new flat doors meet "security by design" standards.

A test certificate for all replacement doors should be provided to the homeowner by the contractor supplying/fitting the door confirming that the door set meets this standard. Alternatively, fire door sets should be marked in accordance with TRADA's Q-Mark Scheme or BWF1s Certifire Scheme.

How can I find a competent builder to install a new door for me?

Installing a fire door correctly is as important as ensuring the door itself is to the correct standard, we recommend that homeowners only utilise the services of a competent third party accredited fire door installation company.

Replacement or removal of internal flat doors and internal layout alterations

Like flat entrance doors, certain doors inside your flat i.e. the kitchen door, or if you live in a maisonette all the doors between a room and your staircase, are also fire doors. Their purpose is to prevent a fire from spreading from the room it started within, to another room and to stop the fire and smoke preventing you from leaving your flat.

As such if you want to remove or replace any internal doors or alter the layout of your flat in any way, you must attain building control and Redbridge Council consent, so we can ensure that the work you want to carry out won't prevent you being able to escape if a fire starts in your home.