The campaign
A fire safety campaign entitled “Let’s Stay Fire Safe” has been launched in Kent and Medway. The Kent Housing Group (KHG) has teamed up with a number of housing associations and local councils to deliver the potentially life-saving campaign. Although primarily aimed at the people living in social housing, our fire safety advice and tips are applicable to all residents across Kent and Medway.
Our campaign is split into two parts, covering fire safety advice in the home and guidance on keeping communal areas safe in blocks of flats.
Kent Fire & Rescue Service
Prior to the launch, we shared details of the campaign with Kent & Fire Rescue Service (KFRS) to ensure that our fire safety messages are in line with official guidance, which KFRS confirmed.
For more information please visit www.kent.fire-uk.org
What is your landlord doing?
Social housing landlords, housing associations and local council housing teams across Kent and Medway will be sharing details of our ‘Let’s Stay Fire Safe’ campaign with their tenants, to encourage them to take simple steps to keep themselves, their families and neighbours fire safe.
Participating landlords will be contacting their tenants with details of the “Let’s Stay Fire Safe” campaign and putting up information posters in communal areas. The campaign also includes two animations (which are fully accessible with subtitle options), and a “toolkit” for landlords including images, social media assets and posts, QR codes and of course this dedicated information page on the Kent Housing Group website.
To view the animations click below;
What advice is being given to tenants?
Our “Let’s Stay Fire Safe” campaign is based on simple advice and guidance that we can all follow to ensure that minimise the risks of fires in our homes and communal areas of residential blocks. These top tips include the following messages:
- Have a working smoke detector, and test it regularly,
- Make sure you do not overload your electrical sockets,
- Read the fire safety advice for any portable heaters you use,
- Don’t lot leave lit candles or cigarettes unattended in your home,
- Shut fire doors in communal areas and report any damage to them to your landlord straight away,
- Keep communal areas like corridors, entrance halls and stairwells clear from clutter,
- Don’t charge personal items in communal areas or store them in communal cupboards,
- Don’t light open fires or BBQs in your home, balcony or communal gardens (without gaining permission of the landlord),
- Make sure you and your family know what the fire escape plan is for your building
Speak to your landlord today about any concerns
We are encouraging tenants to speak with their landlord if you have any concerns about fire safety, either in your home or within the block. This could be reporting damage to fire doors, concern about clutter building up in communal areas like hallways, corridors or stairwells, issues surrounding the safety of electrical sockets and more.
Find your landlord here
Ashford Borough Council on Home Page (ashford.gov.uk)
Choice Support on https://www.choicesupport.org.uk/contact-us/general-enquiries
Clarion Housing Group Clarion Housing Group (clarionhg.com)
Dartford Borough Council Repairs@dartford.gov.uk
Dover District Council housing.repairs@dover.gov.uk
English Rural Housing Association https://englishrural.org.uk/
Folkestone and Hythe District Council https://www.folkestone-hythe.gov.uk/council-repairs
Golding Homes https://www.goldinghomes.org.uk/building-safety-2022
Gravesham Borough Council housing.repairs.team@gravesham.gov.uk
Gravesend Churches Housing Association https://www.gcha.org.uk/
Hyde Housing https://www.hyde-housing.co.uk/
Medway Council housingsafetyconcern@medway.gov.uk
mhs homes fire.safety@mhs.org.uk
Riverside https://www.riverside.org.uk/
Sanctuary https://www.sanctuary.co.uk/
Southern Housing https://www.southernhousing.org.uk/
Town and Country Housing https://tch.org.uk/
West Kent Housing Association Places To Live, Space To Grow | West Kent | West Kent
Let’s all stay fire safe…
We all know that a fire can happen at any time but there are some simple things we can all do to stay fire safe, in our homes and in communal areas we all use. By landlords coming together like this and speaking with one voice, we hope that our “Let’s Stay Fire Safe” messages are heard loud and clear across Kent and Medway.