West Midlands
Warwick HMO fire safety requirements
Warwick publishes its own HMO fire safety standard, "Warwick District Council HMO Licence Conditions (licences issued after 1 August 2022, with the June 2025 update)" (August 2022, updated June 2025).
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?
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?
Warwick District Council HMO Licence Conditions (licences issued after 1 August 2022, with the June 2025 update)
Published August 2022, updated June 2025.
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.
What Warwick 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
- 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
- Not advised
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
- Not advised
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
- Not advised
| 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 | 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 | Not advised | Not advised | Not advised |
- 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
LACORS national guide
“30-minute protected route note 8, is required, including 30-minute fire-resisting construction and FD30 doors to all risk rooms (without smoke seals ... 30-minute fire-resisting construction and FD30S doors to all risk rooms. Travel distance must not be excessive”
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
Council's own standard
“Why are WDC no longer requiring fire extinguishers in HMOs? Because it has been determined that best practice now suggests that tenants should prioritise escaping from the property rather than attempting to fight a fire.”
Spotted something out of date? Tell us and we will check it.
Common questions
Do I need a fire risk assessment for a Warwick HMO licence?
Can I do my own HMO fire risk assessment in Warwick?
Which fire safety standard does Warwick use for HMOs?
What fire alarm does a 3-storey shared house need in Warwick?
Check your Warwick HMO against the council's standard
Answer plain-English questions about your house and get a fire risk assessment report built on Warwick's rules. £45, no subscription.