Wales
Swansea HMO fire safety requirements
Swansea publishes its own HMO fire safety standard, "HMO Licensing Policy 2020, Appendix B Means of Escape: Housing Fire Safety Quick Reference Guide (Wales)" (2020). It is based on the Wales standard, which 2 other councils use too.
Is a fire risk assessment needed for the licence?
Not stated by the council
We could not find the council saying whether it wants to see your fire risk assessment. Fire safety law still says the landlord of an HMO must have one.
Who can carry it out?
No rule on who writes it
The council does not say who must carry out the fire risk assessment, so a landlord can do it themselves, as long as it is done properly.
Which standard applies?
HMO Licensing Policy 2020, Appendix B Means of Escape: Housing Fire Safety Quick Reference Guide (Wales)
Published 2020.
Read the council's document →When did we last check?
4 October 2026
We re-check every council's documents each month and update this page when they change.
What Swansea 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 D2, LD3
- 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 shared house, 6 tenants
- Fire alarm system
- Grade D2, LD3
- 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
- Required
| 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 D2, LD3 | Grade D2, LD3 | Grade A, LD2, plus a linked heat detector and a standalone smoke alarm in each letting |
| Fire doors on bedrooms | Required | Required | Required |
| Fire door on the kitchen | Required | Required | Required |
| Protected escape route | 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 | Required |
- Grade D2 (mains alarms with a replaceable backup battery)
- Grade A (a panel system with call points)
- LD3 (escape route only)
- LD2 (escape route plus rooms where fires are likely to start)
In the council's own words
The wording these requirements come from, quoted from the published documents.
Fire alarms
LACORS national guide
“Shared house HMO of three or four storeys (shared cooking facilities) Grade D: LD3 coverage + additional detection to the kitchen, lounge and any cellar containing a risk (interlinked) Shared house HMO of five or six storeys (shared cooking facilities) Grade A: LD2 coverage ... Bedsit HMO of one or two storeys with individual cooking facilities within bedsits A mixed system: Grade D: LD2 coverage in the common areas and heat detectors in bedsits (interlinked) Grade D smoke alarm in each bedsit to protect the sleeping occupants (non-interlinked) Bedsit HMO of three to six storeys with individual cooking facilities within bedsits A mixed system: Grade A: LD2 coverage in the common areas ... Where cooking facilities are sited in shared kitchen, not within bedsits: interlinked smoke alarms with integral battery backup located in each bedsit”
Fire doors
Shared regional standard
“Ideal standard (for normal risk property) ... 30 minute protected route with FD30 Fire Doors (no smoke seals) ... In low risk shared houses (see below)”
Escape route
Shared regional standard
“Ideal standard (for normal risk property) ... 30 minute protected route with FD30 Fire Doors (no smoke seals) ... In low risk shared houses (see below)”
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
Shared regional standard
“In shared houses, a multi-purpose fire extinguisher (type 1.5kg dry powder or 6 litre AFFF Foam) is recommended on each floor within the escape route. In all HMOs where the Fire Safety Order applies, including houses converted to self contained flats and bedsits, multi-purpose extinguishers (type as above) are required unless the landlord can demonstrate through risk assessment that an acceptable level of safety can be achieved without the provision of extinguishers.”
Spotted something out of date? Tell us and we will check it.
Not in Swansea?
Councils using the same standard as Swansea
Common questions
Do I need a fire risk assessment for a Swansea HMO licence?
Can I do my own HMO fire risk assessment in Swansea?
Which fire safety standard does Swansea use for HMOs?
What fire alarm does a 3-storey shared house need in Swansea?
Check your Swansea HMO against the council's standard
Answer plain-English questions about your house and get a fire risk assessment report built on Swansea's rules. £45, no subscription.