Yorkshire and The Humber
Bradford HMO fire safety requirements
Bradford publishes its own HMO fire safety standard, "Fire Safety Principles for Residential Accommodation (City of Bradford MDC, v1.2)" (Undated (file 2021, modified 2023)).
Is a fire risk assessment needed for the licence?
Yes, as a licence condition
You need a written fire risk assessment as a condition of the licence, and the council can ask to see it at any time.
Who can carry it out?
A qualified fire risk assessor
The council says the fire risk assessment must be carried out by a qualified or experienced fire risk assessor. A landlord's own assessment is unlikely to be accepted for the licence.
Which standard applies?
Fire Safety Principles for Residential Accommodation (City of Bradford MDC, v1.2)
Published Undated (file 2021, modified 2023).
Read the council's document →When did we last check?
12 October 2026
We re-check every council's documents each month and update this page when they change.
Bradford asks for a qualified fire risk assessor, so a self-assessment (including ours) is unlikely to be accepted for your licence. Find a qualified assessor →
What Bradford expects in 3 typical HMOs
Worked out from the council's own fire safety rules for three common kinds of HMO. Your house may need more or less depending on its layout, which is what a fire risk assessment is for.
2-storey shared house, 5 tenants
- Fire alarm system
- Grade D1, LD2
- Fire doors on bedrooms
- Not required
- Fire door on the kitchen
- Not required
- Protected escape route
- Not required
- Heat detector in the kitchen
- Required
- Emergency lighting
- Not required
- Fire blanket in the kitchen
- Required
- Fire extinguishers
- Recommended
3-storey shared house, 6 tenants
- Fire alarm system
- Grade D1, LD2
- Fire doors on bedrooms
- Required*
- Fire door on the kitchen
- Required
- Protected escape route
- Required
- Heat detector in the kitchen
- Required
- Emergency lighting
- Not required
- Fire blanket in the kitchen
- Required
- Fire extinguishers
- Recommended
3-storey bedsits with cooking in rooms, 6 tenants
- Fire alarm system
- Grade A, LD2, plus a linked heat detector and a standalone smoke alarm in each letting
- Fire doors on bedrooms
- Required
- Fire door on the kitchen
- Required
- Protected escape route
- Required
- Heat detector in the kitchen
- Required
- Emergency lighting
- Not required
- Fire blanket in the kitchen
- Required
- Fire extinguishers
- Recommended
| Requirement | 2-storey shared house, 5 tenants | 3-storey shared house, 6 tenants | 3-storey bedsits with cooking in rooms, 6 tenants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fire alarm system | Grade D1, LD2 | Grade D1, LD2 | Grade A, LD2, plus a linked heat detector and a standalone smoke alarm in each letting |
| Fire doors on bedrooms | Not required | Required* | Required |
| Fire door on the kitchen | Not required | Required | Required |
| Protected escape route | Not required | Required | Required |
| Heat detector in the kitchen | Required | Required | Required |
| Emergency lighting | Not required | Not required | Not required |
| Fire blanket in the kitchen | Required | Required | Required |
| Fire extinguishers | Recommended | Recommended | Recommended |
- Grade D1 (mains alarms with a sealed backup battery)
- Grade A (a panel system with call points)
- LD2 (escape route plus rooms where fires are likely to start)
- * The council's own standard asks for less here, so we show the LACORS minimum. We never go below LACORS.
In the council's own words
The wording these requirements come from, quoted from the published documents.
Fire alarms
Council's own standard
“A mixed grade LD2 Grade A AFD system with interlinked smoke detectors on the escape route, any basement/cellar area and heat detectors in all kitchenettes ... A mixed grade LD2 Grade D1 AFD system with interlinked smoke detectors on the escape route, any basement/cellar area and heat detectors in all bedsits ... complemented by an independent Grade D1 system (non-interlinked single point smoke detection with integral battery back up) within the individual bedsits”
Fire doors
Shared regional standard
“A risk room is a room with a function, where its use or contents present a risk of a fire occurring and developing. Typically this would be a kitchen, shared living room or bedsit room. However on risk assessment it could also include bedrooms due to their location”
Escape route
LACORS national guide
“No requirement for full 30-minute protected route note 7, but the escape route should have sound, traditional construction and should not pass through risk rooms ... 30-minute protected route note 8, is required, including 30-minute fire-resisting construction”
Kitchen heat detector
LACORS national guide
“additional interlinked heat alarm with integral battery back-up located in the kitchen”
Emergency lighting
LACORS national guide
“Emergency escape lighting required only if the route is long or complex or where there is no effective borrowed light ... Shared house HMO of five or six storeys (shared cooking facilities) Conventional lighting and emergency escape lighting”
Fire extinguishers
LACORS national guide
“a simple multi-purpose extinguisher is recommended on each floor in the common parts of HMOs and buildings containing flats.”
Spotted something out of date? Tell us and we will check it.
Not in Bradford?
Councils using the same standard as Bradford
Common questions
Do I need a fire risk assessment for a Bradford HMO licence?
Can I do my own HMO fire risk assessment in Bradford?
Which fire safety standard does Bradford use for HMOs?
What fire alarm does a 3-storey shared house need in Bradford?
Get a qualified assessor for your Bradford HMO
Bradford wants a qualified fire risk assessor. Tell us about the property and we will put you in touch with one.