A fire strategy plan costs from £425 at Fixed Fee Plans. It is a set of scaled floor plans that show the escape route, the alarms, the fire doors and the protected stair, drawn to Approved Document B, so building control or a licensing officer can see at a glance that a way out exists on every floor.
Most people ask for one at the worst moment: a loft conversion is complete and the inspector wants the escape route, or an HMO licence application asks for fire precautions on a plan. It is quicker to draw it with the building regulations drawings, but it can be drawn after the event, and the failures it finds are cheaper before the plasterboard goes on.
When does a house need a fire strategy plan?
When you add a storey, convert a house to flats, or let it to several households. The strictest case is a loft: Approved Document B says that where a conversion creates a storey above 4.5m, the full escape route should be addressed, with fire resisting doors of at least E 20 and partitions of at least REI 30, including upgrading existing doors where necessary. The alternative is sprinklers in the open-plan areas, with a protected partition and door separating the ground storey.
For a house converted into flats, paragraph 6.6 says a minimum REI 30 could be accepted for the structure in a building of up to three storeys if the escape routes meet Section 3. For a rented house with several households, the licence conditions bring alarms and escape routes into the application. In each case the plan is the evidence, and it has to match the building as it stands, which is why we measure first. Our Part B loft guide explains the rules in detail.
What does the plan show?
The route out, step by step. From every bedroom to the final exit, the plan shows the doors it passes through, the rating of each door and wall, the width of the stair, where the alarm heads sit and which windows are the escape windows on upper storeys. Approved Document B paragraph 1.1 asks for a Grade D2 Category LD3 system at minimum for all dwellings, and more for a large dwellinghouse, so the system grade is marked too.
We draw to the documents building control reads and say which version we used. If the existing stair cannot be protected, we do not hide it: the note says so and shows the alternative, whether that is a sprinkler or a different layout. A plan that passes on paper and fails on site helps nobody, and an inspector has the final say.
What does a landlord have to do beyond the plan?
Four things sit alongside it. A smoke alarm on every storey with living accommodation, under regulation 4 of the 2015 Regulations. A written fire risk assessment, for the common areas of multi-occupied residential buildings under article 9 of the Fire Safety Order, as GOV.UK explains. Fire safety instructions displayed in buildings with two or more sets of domestic premises sharing escape routes, under regulation 9 of the Fire Safety (England) Regulations 2022. And an HMO licence where the property qualifies.
A strategy plan is not a fire risk assessment and does not replace one: it shows how the building is laid out, and the assessment looks at how it is managed. We are a drawing practice, not a firm of fire engineers. For a block with more than two flats, a basement, or a layout that cannot meet the guidance, a fire engineer is the right person, and we say so before you pay. For the licence, our licence pack completes the council's form, and the HMO drawings service covers the planning side.
What does it cost?
Our fee is from £425, and it is a floor: a house with three storeys of rooms to let is quoted from the survey in writing. Building control charges separately for its own checks, and the construction side of a loft is our building regulations drawings at £545 drawings + £150 survey (£695 total). If you are converting a house into flats, our two-flat conversion drawings include the fire route on the proposed plans. Our permitted development checker shows whether the loft needs an application, which is a separate question from fire.
Frequently asked questions
Does every loft conversion need a fire strategy plan?
Every loft conversion that needs building regulations approval has to meet Approved Document B, and a plan of the escape route is how you show it. Building control asks for it with the application.
Do I need one for an HMO licence?
Many councils ask for fire precautions on the licence floor plan or alongside it. Check your council's form. Our licence pack includes the plan the council asks for, and a fuller strategy is available if it wants more.
Is a fire strategy plan the same as a fire risk assessment?
No. The plan shows the layout and the protection. The risk assessment, required by article 9 of the Fire Safety Order for common areas, looks at hazards and management as well, and the responsible person has to make it.
Can you design sprinklers or alarms?
We mark where Approved Document B asks for them and the grade of system. The detailed design and installation is a specialist's job, and we say so when a scheme needs one.