Introduction to Fire Safety Management

part of the supply chain management.
Again, a variety of media is used when communicating 
information to external parties. Increasingly the use of 
electronic communication technology is simplifying and 
accelerating the fl ow of information. An obvious dis-
advantage of the level of use of electronic media is the 
possibility of information overload, where safety critical 
issues can be lost in a plethora of trivial information.
4.4.4 Competence
Competence is the fundamental requirement to allow 
any task to be completed safely. A number of defi ning 
safety and employment bodies have attempted to pro-
vide a succinct defi nition of the term competence.
Safety competence can therefore be described as 
being a combination of knowledge, skills and experience 
that ensures roles are fulfi lled and tasks completed with 
due regard to the hazards involved and the risk control 
measures necessary to achieve the required levels of 
safety. The RRFSO also adds the term ‘other qualities’ 
without giving an indication of what they are referring to.
Competence gives confi dence to those who have 
it and ensures that policies will be developed and 
implemented effectively by all those having responsibil-
ity for safety in the workplace.
It follows that the competence of the most senior 
manager is as relevant to shop fl oor safety as the 
competence of the contract cleaner. Each has a different 
but nonetheless vital role to play in the control of risk.
Each needs to have an adequate level of knowledge, 
skill and experience to enable them to do what is 
necessary to make the workplace safe. The senior buyer 
may be responsible to ensure, for example, the provision 
of safe work equipment, whereas the contract cleaner is 
responsible for ensuring the waste by-products of the 
equipment do not present a fi re hazard. Each must be 
able to recognise what needs to be done and each must 
have the necessary skills to play their part effectively.
Examples of defi nitions of competence:
The ability to perform the activities within 
an occupation or function to the stand-
ards expected in employment (Manpower 
Services Commission 1991).
The ability to use knowledge, understand-
ing, practical and thinking skills to perform 
effectively to the national standards expected 
in employment (DfEE 1998).
Individual competence may be affected by 
the following factors:
➤
The ability to acquire knowledge or 
develop skills
➤
Mental approach (e.g. powers of con-
centration, maturity, motivation)
➤
The ability to apply existing knowledge 
and ‘common sense’
➤
Skills acquired through experience, 
instruction, or training
➤
The physical ability to develop work skills.
Organisations that effectively manage safety need, as 
a minimum, to monitor levels of competence at various 
times and will normally have formal arrangements for 
measuring competence on the following occasions:
➤
On recruitment of employees
➤
On promoting and internal transfer of staff
➤
Prior to engaging contractors
➤
The introduction of new:
➤
Work 
equipment
➤
Procedures
➤
Working 
routine
➤
To assess training needs
➤
To assess training effectiveness
➤
When investigating incidents and accidents.
The Department of Employment defi ne training as:
The systematic development of attitude, 
knowledge and skill patterns required by an 
individual to perform adequately a given task 
or job.

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The use of the term ‘systematic training’ means the 
training must be designed and planned so as to ensure 
the employee has the necessary information and skills to 
deal with workplace risks. The training should be struc-
tured and delivered by people competent to do so.
Safety training may be incorporated into routine 
skills training, or may be delivered as a separate training 
programme; the main objectives should be:
➤
To provide necessary safety skills and information to 
the workforce
➤
To support the safety culture within the organisation
➤
To ensure the success of any safety programmes 
and support the safety management system
➤
To ensure compliance with risk control strategies, 
e.g. fi re wardens training to assist in the safe evacu-
ation of a building.
All health and safety training (including fi re safety train-
ing) must be provided for all employees relevant to their 
duties and responsibilities, and the training programme 
must include temporary or short-term employees as well 
as permanent staff. The training should take place dur-
ing working hours. Where this is outside of normal work-
ing hours it must be treated as an extension of working 
hours, i.e. it should be considered as overtime.
Training is not a ‘one-off’ activity; to be effective it 
is conducted systematically throughout an organisation 
and is cyclical in nature.