Safe and Well

Safe and Well is a free home fire safety visit, tailored to an individual’s needs that can support members of our community to help protect them and their home from fire.

During a Safe and Well visit we will:

• Identify any potential fire risks and discuss with the occupier how they can prevent or reduce the risk.
• Ensure occupants have working smoke alarms, install where necessary, and advise on maintenance and testing.
• Ensure occupants have Carbon monoxide detectors where needed, install if necessary and discuss the dangers.
• Help put together a household escape plan and identify any mobility issues that may impede an evacuation.
• Issue fire retardant bedding, furniture throws and nightwear where needed.
• Give basic advice on topics such as falls prevention and smoking.

We may identify a need for advice, support or intervention from other agencies. If required we will engage with the individual to adopt a ‘multi agency approach’ and may share information and work collaboratively with other partner agencies in order to reduce risk.

Whilst we’d like to offer visits to all Hampshire and Isle of Wight residents unfortunately we aren’t able to. Instead, we focus our visits on the most vulnerable people in our community.

The following list of vulnerabilities may indicate a person is at more risk of harm from fire:

• Cognitive impairments – which would mean a person might not understand what to do in the event of a fire
• Mobility impairments – meaning a person’s ability to escape from a property in an emergency would be hindered
• Signs of carelessness with smoking materials – burn marks evident within the property
• Substance misuse – which may impair a person’s ability to exit a property in an emergency
• Hoarding or high levels of clutter – this can obstruct a person’s ability to exit a property as well as provide high levels of fuel to feed a fire
• Returning home from the hospital and there are fire concerns in the home, e.g. burn marks on bedding, furniture, or carpets. Electrical faults, unsafe practices with cooking and heating the home, the occupier smokes and there are no fire alarms installed in the home

If you meet any of the criteria below or you know somebody that does, then please make a referral for a Safe and Well (home fire safety visit)

• Anyone who is over 65
• There is evidence of fire risk concerns eg. burn marks on bedding, furniture
• There are signs of hoarding
• There are signs of unsafe cooking practices
• You/they would not hear the smoke detector if it went off
• You/they would not know what to do if the smoke detector sounded
• You/they would be unable to get out if the smoke detector/alarm activated
• Anyone who is substance or alcohol dependant

Not eligible for a Safe & Well visit?

If you or the occupier are not eligible for a home safety visit, there are still actions you can take to reduce the risk from fire in the home. Protect your family and your home with our free Home Fire Safety Check. It only takes around 15 minutes to complete, answering questions about your property and lifestyle. You’ll be left with personalised advice you can download and adopt. Complete your free Home Fire Safety Check now.