Student accommodation is one of the highest-stakes residential environments there is: hundreds of sleeping occupants at high density, many living away from home for the first time, in buildings that are often tall enough to fall under the Building Safety Act. Passive fire protection is what keeps a fire in the room or flat where it starts long enough for everyone else to get out – and increasingly, it’s what the operator has to evidence to the Building Safety Regulator, the fire authority and their insurer.
Ark delivers and maintains passive fire protection across PBSA and university halls nationwide – fire doors, compartmentation, fire stopping, cavity barriers and coatings – FIRAS-certified, installed to the tested system, planned around the academic calendar, and documented in Onetrace so operators can prove compliance against BS 9991, the Fire Safety (England) Regulations 2022 and the Building Safety Act.
If the operator can’t evidence compliance
In a building full of sleeping occupants, the Responsible Person has to be able to prove the fire strategy is delivered – not just assert it. Missing fire-door inspection records in an 11m+ block are a direct breach of the Fire Safety (England) Regulations 2022; on an 18m+ block, a thin safety case is a Building Safety Act failure. Both put the operator’s registration, insurance and reputation on the line before anything has even caught fire.
If the work isn’t controlled on site
High-churn buildings – annual turnarounds, repairs, re-cabling – erode compartmentation fast. Fire doors fitted with the wrong seals or closers, penetrations left unsealed after maintenance, and cavity barriers missed at survey all void the protection, and none of it shows until an inspection or an incident in an occupied hall.
How Ark protects the operator
Third-party certified installation to the tested system, FDIS- and FIRAS-accredited fire-door inspection to the statutory frequency, and every door, penetration and barrier logged in Onetrace with product, location, photo and sign-off. The operator gets a defensible evidence trail mapped to the FS(E)R 2022 regime and the Building Safety Act safety case – produced on demand, not rebuilt under pressure.
Committed to ensuring the safety of students, our team has the expertise in operating within open environments across the UK. Our focus is on the safety of staff and students while delivering industry-leading passive fire protection solutions. With student accommodation being a highly regulated area, we understand the importance of compliance and work closely with our clients to ensure all standards are met.
Discover our extensive selection of passive fire protection services designed for student accommodations across the United Kingdom. Our top priorities revolve around two key objectives: enhancing structural safety to facilitate efficient evacuations and minimising the risks associated with fire incidents. Take a moment to explore our comprehensive service offerings outlined below.
Fire stopping involves sealing openings to prevent the passage of fire, smoke, and heat in various areas of a building. By creating fire-resistant compartments that divide the building vertically and horizontally, the spread of fire can be contained effectively. It’s essential to implement fully compliant fire stopping measures in buildings to limit the potential risks to students and minimise the spread of fire.
Fire doors are vital for ensuring compartmentation in student accommodation. At Ark Fire Protection, we provide a comprehensive range of services related to fire doors. Whether you need a new door closer or a complete upgrade to meet industry standards, we offer fire door maintenance and installation with third-party accreditation.
Intumescent coatings for structural steel are a tried and tested solution in safeguarding buildings against the potential risks of structural damage. We exclusively use intumescent coatings that have undergone rigorous testing and meet EU standards. Our clients can have complete confidence in the advanced fire protection these coatings provide, minimising threats to the structural integrity of their buildings.
External Fire Barrier systems offer an effective solution for preventing the spread of fire and smoke in roof and ceiling areas, as well as concealed voids within buildings. These systems are designed to be suitable for voids located up to 10.5 metres. Vertical fire barrier systems provide both insulation and integrity for up to 120 minutes, while friction fire barrier slabs offer a protective duration of up to 60 minutes.
Ark Fire Protection specialises in installing and maintaining fire curtains made from flexible fibre. These curtains are specifically designed for installation in challenging areas or spaces without sufficient structural support, such as ceiling voids or lofts. Whether you need enhanced integrity or insulation, we offer a comprehensive range of fire curtains tailored to your specific requirements.
Fire partitioning is a safety measure used during the construction of student accommodation to prevent the spread of fire. It involves creating internal walls and ceilings that contain the fire within a specific room or area of the building for a limited time. This allows students and staff to find escape routes and minimises damage to the building as only a designated area is affected.
Our FRA services for student accommodation include reinstating or implementing passive fire protection measures that currently do not meet the required fire safety standards. Our remedial works for fire risk assessment aim to elevate your building’s fire safety standards to the necessary level, in line with the latest guidelines and regulations.
Whether you have questions, require further information, or would like to discuss your specific needs for passive fire protection solutions, our dedicated team is here to assist you.
When it comes to Passive Fire Protection, you need a company that you can rely on. Ark Fire Protection is proud to be accredited by the leading industry bodies – ensuring that we always meet the highest standards of quality and safety, and that our customers can always expect a first-class service.
We’re also ISO 9001 certified, meaning that our quality management systems are regularly audited and approved. So when you choose Ark Fire Protection, you can be confident that you’re making the best possible decision for your property.
We specialise in providing complete end-to-end solutions for passive fire protection in student accommodation. Our range of services includes design, installation, maintenance, and remedial works. By taking a comprehensive approach, we ensure that your building is equipped with state-of-the-art PFP systems that meet the highest industry standards. You can trust us to deliver a reliable and all-encompassing solution to safeguard your premises against fire hazards. Get in touch with us today to discover more about our services and how we can help ensure the safety of your project.
For a student-accommodation operator, Onetrace turns every fire door, penetration and barrier into a defensible digital record mapped to the duties that matter – the FS(E)R 2022 inspection regime and, on taller blocks, the Building Safety Act safety case. Each installation and each inspection is logged with product, location, photo and sign-off, so the operator can produce a complete, date-stamped evidence trail on demand for the Building Safety Regulator, the fire authority or the insurer – building by building, door by door.
According to Approved Document B, Volume 2 (Buildings Other Than Dwellings), purpose-built student accommodation must prevent the spread of fire while also meeting other requirements. Higher-rise schemes are also subject to the Building Safety Act 2022:
The document and its amendments define the proper protocols for implementing fire stopping measures. Our team of experts can offer valuable support throughout this process to ensure the utmost protection for your project.
Passive fire protection in student accommodation refers to the fire-resisting measures built into halls of residence and purpose-built student blocks that contain fire and smoke, protect escape routes, and maintain structural stability without being activated. These include compartment walls and floors, fire doors, fire stopping around services, cavity barriers, and fire-resistant coatings.
Student accommodation combines sleeping risk with high occupancy and shared facilities, often in tall, densely populated blocks. Many residents are living away from home for the first time and may be unfamiliar with the building. Passive fire protection contains a fire to its room or flat of origin, protecting the hundreds of other residents and keeping shared escape routes clear. We deliver and maintain it across student accommodation nationwide – FIRAS-certified and evidenced through OneTrace on every job.
Purpose-built student accommodation is generally designed and managed in line with BS 9991 and Approved Document B of the Building Regulations. Once occupied, the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 places duties on the responsible person – usually the university or accommodation provider – to assess and manage fire risk.
Because many student blocks exceed 18 metres, they fall within the Building Safety Act 2022 as higher-risk buildings, bringing duties around the golden thread of information and oversight by the Building Safety Regulator. Smaller shared student houses may instead be regulated as Houses in Multiple Occupation (HMOs), which carry their own fire safety and licensing requirements.
The key regulations affecting fire safety in student accommodation are:
We plan works around the academic calendar and document every installation through OneTrace, giving providers a clear evidence trail against these duties.
The hardest constraint in student accommodation isn’t the work – it’s the window. Buildings are full for most of the year and empty for a short, fiercely contested summer. Ark plans programmes around it: larger installation and remediation works scheduled into the summer void and turnaround periods, and any in-term works phased to keep escape routes open and disruption to residents to a minimum. Every job is captured in Onetrace as it’s done, so a compressed summer programme still hands back a complete evidence pack in time for the new intake.
Typical measures include compartment walls and floors between rooms and flats, fire doors to bedrooms, kitchens and communal areas, fire stopping around services, cavity barriers, and fire-resistant coatings on structural elements. These contain fire and protect shared escape routes.
The responsible person – usually the university, accommodation provider or managing agent – is accountable under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 for ensuring fire safety measures are installed, maintained and documented.
Student accommodation combines sleeping occupants, high density and shared cooking facilities, often in tall buildings. This raises the importance of containing a fire to its room of origin so the wider building stays safe while residents evacuate.
Yes, where a block is at least 18m tall or has 7 or more storeys it is a higher-risk building under the Building Safety Act 2022 – which brings golden-thread information duties, an Accountable Person, a safety case and Building Safety Regulator oversight. Many PBSA towers meet this threshold, so the evidence standard is high.
It should be inspected at least annually, with more frequent checks of fire doors in the common parts of taller blocks under the Fire Safety (England) Regulations 2022. Inspections should also follow any refurbishment or change of use.
Yes. We usually schedule larger works during void periods between academic terms, and where works happen during occupation we phase them to keep escape routes available and limit disruption.
In buildings over 11m, the Fire Safety (England) Regulations 2022 require quarterly checks of communal fire doors and annual checks of flat and room entrance doors, with residents given fire-door information. Ark delivers the regime to FDIS-accredited standards with a digital record held against each doorset.
Yes – and they’re planned around the calendar. Ark schedules larger installation and remediation programmes into the summer void and turnaround periods, and phases any in-term work to keep escape routes open and disruption to residents minimal, while still capturing a full evidence pack.
No. Larger purpose-built blocks are designed and managed to BS 9991, Approved Document B and – if tall enough – the Building Safety Act. Smaller shared houses are usually regulated as Houses in Multiple Occupation under the Housing Act 2004, with HMO fire safety standards. Ark works across both and advises on the right standard for each.
